YuGiOh! Legacy: Duelist Kingdom
by Feral2K
Summary: Same characters. New rules. Edit: Last chapter up! Yugi vs. Pegasus!
1. Chapter 1

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own most of the characters in this project.

Disclaimer: No slash, no hentai. It's a project involving dueling. If you don't like it, that's entirely your problem. I just don't see the appeal in having Kaiba nail Yugi, or whatever the fad is right now.

**Chapter 1**

Yugi Mutou reached over and hit the snooze button on his alarm clock for what had to be the third or fourth time this morning. As his eyes drifted shut again, he wondered what would prompt him to set his alarm on a Saturday anyway. Right before his eyes closed fully, they fell upon his deck of Duel Monsters cards, and that triggered the memory that shot him into full awareness.

Yugi practically leapt out of his bed. The clock said that it was about 10:30, meaning that he had a half-hour to get to the convention center and sign up for the tournament. He got dressed in under a minute, grabbed his deck and ran down the stairs. Before he could get out the door, he heard his grandfather call his name from the kitchen. Yugi stopped, and then turned to the kitchen to talk to his grandfather.

Yugi's grandfather was sitting at the table when Yugi entered the kitchen. Yugi sat down across from him, leg twitching a little. He had to get moving, and fast, if he wanted to make it to the tournament. His grandfather smiled at him.

"Can we make this quick? I've got to hurry if I want to make it to the tournament. It's kind of a big one, and I don't want to miss it."

"You'll make it. I just wanted to give you something. Think of it as an early birthday present."

Grandpa handed Yugi a small box. Yugi opened it and found that it held a bunch of Duel Monsters cards. Yugi began looking through them, and then stopped suddenly when his brain started to recognize them.

"Grandpa, you're . . . you're giving me your deck? But-"

"Yugi, I retired from Duel Monsters after my last championship. I decided that I'd rather have you play it instead of selling the cards. Now, how about getting you to that tournament"

Yugi nodded; his grandfather's gift had left him speechless.

_____________________________________________________________

Yugi finished signing in and went to mingle with the crowd. As he was walking through, someone bumped into him. He turned to see who it was, and found himself looking not quite in the eyes of Tea Gardner, one of his friends from school and a passable duelist in her own right.

"Yugi? I didn't think you were going to make it. What took you so long?"

"Well, it's kind of a funny story, but I'll get into it later."

Tea looked like she wanted to hear the story now, but any conversation was cut out by the tournament official addressing the players.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Domino City Duelist Kingdom qualifier. As you know, the top two duelists in this tournament will receive invitations to the Duelist Kingdom tournament held next month. Also, the top eight finalists will receive an exclusive card printed for this tournament season. Now, pairings will be posted shortly. Good luck, and have fun."

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Five rounds later, Yugi moved over to watch Tea. He'd won his last round, and three of the four rounds before that. Tea had already lost one round as well, and was currently tied with her opponent, each having won one game out of the best-of-three match. Yugi was starting to figure out who was winning this game when a pair of arms wrapped around him from behind.

"Yugi! Aw, man, I was wondering where you were!"

Yugi wormed his way out of the hug and found himself staring at Nikita Sasami. Nikita was another friend of his from school. She was pretty good at Duel Monsters, and desperately wanted to make it big on the international tournament circuit. This meant that she did a lot of research online, and played the game almost non-stop. Her presence here didn't surprise him one bit.

"Hey, Nikita. How are you doing so far?"

"Five wins! The invite's mine, I can tell! How about you?"

"I lost the first round, but won all the others. It doesn't seem like a lot of people care about winning the invites, though."

"Yeah, all the big names have theirs already. Underwood, Howards, Roba, Crowler, even Kaiba. Granted, Kaiba got an automatic invite for winning the world championship last year, but still, not a lot of them left to make this tournament matter. Just the local players hoping for a free card."

A whoop sounded form behind them, and they turned to see Tea jumping out of her seat, arms raised, while her opponent slumped back into his chair, defeated. Now, all they had to do was see how their standings were.

_____________________________________________________________

Yugi looked at the machines set up in the parking lot. They looked like small arenas with overlooking platforms set up on either of the short sides. He recognized them immediately. These platforms were used in the final rounds of larger tournaments. They generated holographic images of the monsters and magic of Duel Monsters, allowing players to live out the battles somewhere other than their imaginations.

"Attention, all players in the final round. To prepare for the upcoming Duelist Kingdom tournament, the final rounds of the tournament will be played on these Duel Platforms. The final match-ups have been posted. Report to the Duel Platform to which you have been assigned in five minutes."

Yugi went over to the listings. Nikita was playing Koji Tohiko, a vaguely popular player who had obviously not qualified for Duelist Kingdom yet. He recognized two of the other names, Joey Wheeler and Tristan Taylor; both of them went to his school. His name was at the bottom of the list, next to . . . Tea. He heard her swallow behind him. Obviously she was just as nervous about dueling as he was.

"Come on, Tea. We can still stay friends, no matter what happens in this game, right?"

"Yeah, sure. Let's just get this over with."

Both of them walked over to the Duel Platform to which they had been assigned. When they were both at the playing areas, the judge began the round. Both of them drew their five cards, and then Yugi, who had been chosen to go first, drew another card.

"I start by summoning Horn Imp in Attack Mode!"

Yugi placed the card on one of the monster slots on the platform. In the central area, one of the squares on the grid lit up. A brown humanoid with orange eyes and a short horn jutting from the center of its forehead rose up from the lit square. Yugi almost jumped a little; he wasn't used to seeing his monsters come to life. Tea backed up a little too, but both players' shock was quickly swept away.

"All right, let's do this. Doma the Angel of Silence, in Attack Mode! Attack Horn Imp!"

A grey-skinned humanoid covered in dark red and green armor rose out of a monster slot on Tea's side of the field. Spreading its wings, it shot forward, striking the Horn Imp with its spear. Yugi's monster shattered like glass, and his Life Points dropped by 300 (Yugi: 1700; Tea: 2000). Yugi drew his card.

"I play Mystical Elf in Defense Mode, and play one card face-down. Your turn."

Yugi's elf, a blue-skinned creature in a green robe, took a knee as soon as it was formed, _This should hold her off long enough for me to get something that can retaliate_. Tea made a face at Yugi's monster, and then drew her card.

"I'll play a monster face-down, and switch Doma to Defense Mode. Your turn."

"I play Rude Kaiser In Attack Mode, and attack Doma the Angel of Silence!"

Yugi's reptilian warrior rushed forward, slashing with the blades on its arms. Doma dissolved into a staticy haze. Tea drew another card.

"I summon Airknight Parshath in Attack Mode, and attack Rude Kaiser! And, thanks to his effect, I get to draw a card whenever he deals battle damage to you!" (Yugi: 1600; Tea: 2000)

Yugi looked at his hand. Silver Fang, Sun Shower, Eye of Truth and Beaver Warrior. Nothing that would help him. He drew his card, and smiled. He'd just drawn a killer card, one that just might win him the game.

"I summon Silver Fang in Attack Mode, and then play the spell card Full Moon!"

Silver Fang appeared on the Field a few seconds before the holographic moon appeared in the space above the Duel Field. Silver Fang raised his head to the sky and howled.

"Wait, what does that do?"

"Full Moon doubles Silver Fang's attack. Now, Silver Fang, attack Airknight Parshath!" (Yugi: 1600; Tea: 1500)

Tea actually rocked back a little as Silver Fang destroyed her monster. She drew her card, and then let out a little chuckle.

"It's game over for your little doggie there, because I summon my Wingweaver in Attack Mode! Wingweaver, attack Silver Fang!"

The six-winged angel raised its hands to launch an attack, but it stopped partway through. The cause of this was a circle of glyphs and runes that expanded from its waist.

"What? Attack! Blow Silver Fang away!"

"She can't, thanks to my Spellbinding Circle. Wingweaver can't attack, and it loses 700 attack as long as my trap card stays on the field. Now, Silver Fang, counter-attack!" (Yugi: 1600; Tea: 1150)

Tea looked at her cards, and then set her hand on top of her deck.

"Forfeit by Tea Gardner! Winner, Yugi Mutou!"

The holograms faded, and both players got down from the duel platforms. Yugi rushed over to talk to Tea.

"Hey, Tea? Why did you give up back there? You still had a fair amount of Life Points left, we could have-"

"You beat my biggest monster, and you probably had something bigger in your deck in case I beat Silver Fang. My losing was inevitable."

Before Yugi could try and argue the point with Tea, someone shoulder-checked him. Yugi almost hit the ground before Tea could catch him. Yugi turned to see Joey Wheeler laughing as he walked away, his lackey Tristan following behind.

"That jerk! Someone should teach him a lesson."

"It's all right, really. He didn't actually do any damage. Come on, let's see who made it to the semifinals."

_____________________________________________________________

"Both of them? No way could they _both_ have won. Joey, maybe, but Tristan's basically a shaved monkey. He had to have cheated. That's the only way-"

"Look, I know you don't like them, but that doesn't really matter. Besides, you're going up against that 'shaved monkey'. Yugi's the one that's got to face Joey."

"Beat him down, little dude. If he beats you, you will never live it down."

Nikita went for the Duel Platform farthest from the posted brackets. Yugi went for the closest one, where Joey was already waiting. Joey burst out laughing when he saw Yugi.

"Come on, how lucky can I get? I'm gonna mop the floor with you, little man!"

Yugi tried to ignore Joey's taunts as he got to his platform. Once he got to the platform proper, he set his deck in its appointed spot while Joey did the same, taunting all the while. Yugi tuned it out as soon as he heard the judge begin the round. Joey had won the right to the first turn, and so drew his card.

"I summon a monster face-down, and end my turn."

Yugi drew his card. Nothing stellar, but, if he remembered correctly, Joey didn't have anything in his deck with a decent defense. He had a couple monsters that he was sure would break through Joey's defenses.

"I summon Koumori Dragon in Attack Mode, and attack your monster!"

Joey's monster turned out to be a Rock Ogre Grotto, a creature made of solid stone with a miserable defense. It shattered under Yugi's attack. Joey thought this was funny.

"I knew I'd lure you out with something weak. Now, I summon my Sword Hunter in Attack Mode. Sword Hunter, attack Koumori Dragon!"

Joey's warrior leapt forward, slashing at Yugi's dragon with his drawn sword. Yugi's dragon evaporated when the sword struck, and the blade turned deep purple, like the color of a bruise. (Joey: 2000; Yugi: 1050) Yugi was a little stunned. Joey had obviously reconstructed his deck for this tournament, and Yugi had made an amateur mistake in assuming that he hadn't. That was an easy situation to remedy.

"I summon the Dark Magician. Attack Sword Hunter!"

A purple-robed human with a green staff rose from the ground and unleashed a torrent of shadowy energy. The Sword Hunter raised his sword, causing the energy to split across his blade. As the spell dissipated, Sword Hunter charged in, slashing at Yugi's magician. It too was absorbed into the Sword Hunter's blade. (Joey: 2000; Yugi: 900) Joey laughed.

"You don't even know what it does, do you? I'll let you in on his secret. Whenever Sword Hunter destroys a monster in battle, he absorbs their soul, increasing his attack by 200. He's already as strong as some of the toughest monsters around, and all you can do is make him bigger. Game over, man!"

Yugi looked at his hand. Joey's monster had 2850 attack, and the closest thing he had to that was his Red-Eyes Black Dragon, and that was about 500 points too low. As he looked through his hand, he came across another card, Polymerization. A bell went off in his head. If he could draw Summoned Skull, he could use Polymerization to create a monster big enough to beat Sword Hunter. The only problem was, he needed to draw Summoned Skull, and he had no idea how deeply that particular card was buried in his deck. Drawing his card, he found that he had a way to stall.

"I play Swords of Revealing Light! Now, your Sword Hunter can't attack for the next three turns. Next, I play one card face-down, and summon Griffore in Defense Mode."

Joey grumbled a little at this play, but quickly found a way around it.

"I play Battle Steer in Attack Mode, and attack Griffore."

Yugi drew. Not Summoned Skull. However, he could go a little on the offensive.

"I summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon in Attack Mode. Red-Eyes, attack Battle Steer!"

Joey's minotaur-esque monster dissolved under the attack of Yugi's dragon. (Joey: 1400; Yugi: 900) Joey was beginning to get upset. He was more likely to make stupid plays at this point, and Yugi was hoping that he would. If he got really lucky, Joey would make a large enough mistake that Yugi wouldn't have to rely on drawing Summoned Skull. Unfortunately, Joey didn't make that critical mistake.

"I play Leogun in Attack Mode, and play one card face-down."

Now Yugi had some thinking to do. The likelihood was that Joey had played a trap card, and was hoping for Yugi to attack him so he could trigger it. Of course, he could be bluffing. Either way, this was the critical point of the game. Yugi decided that Joey was indeed bluffing, and went all-out.

"Red-Eyes Black Dragon, attack Leogun with Inferno Blast!"

Joey looked furious, but didn't trigger his face-down card. His Leogun shattered when the flames began to consume it. (Joey: 750; Yugi: 900) Yugi placed another card face-down and ended his turn. Joey, who was looking extremely put out, played a monster face-down and ended his turn. Yugi drew, but it wasn't Summoned Skull. He had his Red-Eyes attack, and ended his turn. As soon as he did, Joey let out a whoop.

"Oh, man, you idiot! You're wide open now, and no dragon is gonna save your sorry hide. Sword Hunter, attack!"

Yugi's Red-Eyes was cut in half before Yugi's eyes. (Joey: 750; Yugi: 450) Joey laughed, but stopped when he saw that Yugi was actually smiling.

"What's so funny? I've toasted your two biggest monsters, and my attack is way too high for anything to beat it."

"You've walked right into my hands. First, I play Mokiou Mist! Now, watch as the weapons in which my monsters are stored rust away."

Joey watched as the Sword Hunter's weapons did indeed rust, dropping his attack to its original 2450.

"So what? I've still got-"

"I'm not finished. Second, I play Monster Reborn, bringing my Red-Eyes Black Dragon back to the Field. Third, I play Summoned Skull!"

Purple muscles rippled beneath the exoskeletal bones on the massive demon as it rose from the ground. Together, it and the Red-Eyes looked like true monsters bearing down on the warrior on the other side of the field.

"This changes nothing! You only get one attack per turn! You'll never get enough damage through to win!"

"I will with this. I trigger Polymerization, combining my Red-Eyes Black Dragon and my Summoned Skull to create the Black Skull Dragon!"

Yugi's new monster stood head and shoulders above his previous two. A set of black bones held its muscles in place, same as the Summoned Skull. A massive set of wings coming off its shoulders made it look all that much more imposing.

"Now, Black Skull Dragon, finish this! Attack Sword Hunter!"

Yugi couldn't tell what happened to the Sword Hunter; his dragon blocked his view of the attack. He did, however, see Joey's Life Points dial all the way down to 0. Joey looked stunned; obviously, he had expected to walk all over Yugi. Yugi offered his hand for Joey to shake, but was blown off. Yugi walked over to Nikita's duel, which wrapped up almost as soon as Yugi arrived. Nikita whooped and pumped her fist in the air as Tristan's Life Points dropped to 0. She jumped off the Duel Platform and wrapped Yugi in a bearhug.

"I did it! I'm going to Duelist Kingdom! How'd you do, Yugi?"

"I beat Joey. Looks like we both get to go. All that's left is to finish this tournament. Good luck!"

_____________________________________________________________

Yugi stared across the Duel Platform at Nikita. Honestly, he didn't care if he won or lost this game; both of them had qualified for Duelist Kingdom, and the only real difference between first and second place was bragging rights and a few Duel Monsters boosters. He figured he could play it a little lightly this time. He nodded to Nikita and drew his first card.

"I start out with Celtic Guardian in Attack Mode. Your turn."

Yugi's guardian, a pale-skinned elf in green and brown armor, stood holding his sword. Nikita snorted as she drew her card.

"You want to take it easy? Fine, I'll just blow you away. Twin-Headed Fire Dragon, attack Celtic Guardian!"

A craggy-skinned creature with wings, a tail that terminated with a massive claw and two reptilian heads rose out of the ground and spat twin infernos at Yugi's elf, incinerating it. (Yugi: 1200; Nikita: 2000) Yugi jerked a little. He'd thought this duel would be a little laid back, just the two of them trying out new tactics for fun.

"Come on, Yugi. I don't want to beat you like this, but I will if I have to."

Yugi looked at his hand in a bit of a panic. Nothing there could help him right now; too many weak monsters and two trap cards that wouldn't do anything. He threw Feral Imp in Defense Mode and put both trap cards face-down as a bluff. Nikita drew her card.

"I play Dark Magician Girl in Attack Mode, and equip her with Fairy Meteor Crush. Dark Magician Girl, attack Feral Imp!"

Yugi's little green fiend dissolved, and, thanks to Nikita's spell, Yugi took the leftover Attack Points as damage. (Yugi: 600; Nikita: 2000) Nikita finished her turn by playing a card face-down. Yugi drew, and found himself with a good card.

"I play Beaver Warrior in Defense Mode, and play one card face-down. Your turn."

Nikita laughed as Yugi's rodent-esque monster rose out of the ground.

"All right, time to end this. Dark Magician Girl, attack Beaver Warrior!"

"Not so fast! I turn over my face-down card, Shift! This allows me to return Beaver Warrior to my hand, and then replace it with another monster. And I choose my Dark Magician!"

Yugi's magician appeared on the field, absorbing Dark Magician Girl's attack and firing back his own attack. (Yugi: 600; Nikita: 1500) Nikita was stunned for a second, but recovered and drew her card. The smile that blossomed on her face looked a little cruel.

"Time to end this. I play Mystical Knight of Jackal in Attack Mode! Next, I turn over my face-down card, Axe of Despair, which increases my attack by 1000 points. Now, Mystical Knight of Jackal, finish him!"

A jackal-headed man in ancient Egyptian garb stood up. A single-bladed axe shimmered into existence in its hand. The Anubian monster shot forward, raising its axe to strike. Yugi just grinned.

"And with your spell you have lost this game. I trigger Mirror Force! This trap reflects your monster's attack back at all of your monsters in Attack Mode! And your Knight now has 1500 more attack than your dragon, meaning that you lose."

Nikita watched helplessly as her Mystical Knight of Jackal and Twin-Headed Fire Dragon dissolved under the attack. (Yugi: 600; Nikita: 0) Nikita shook her head a little, and then went over to shake Yugi's hand. Yugi was beaming as he did so. This was certainly a good day.


	2. Chapter 2

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own most of the characters in this project.

Disclaimer: No slash, no hentai. It's a project involving dueling. If you don't like it, that's entirely your problem. I just don't see the appeal in having Kaiba nail Yugi, or whatever the fad is right now.

**Chapter 2**

Yugi sat down at the table, waiting for dinner. He'd been practicing for the Duelist Kingdom tournament, which was to be held about three weeks from now. His friends Nikita and Tea were helping him practice by proxying up different decks for him and Nikita, who had also won entrance to the tournament, to try their decks against. Even his grandfather, an accomplished duelist in his own right, had been helping him get ready for the tournament. Hopefully, it would be enough.

When his grandfather came into the kitchen, Yugi couldn't help but notice that he looked a little shifty. This was a little unusual, but Yugi didn't mention it to him. Whatever his grandfather was thinking, it would come out sooner or later. As it turned out, it came a lot sooner than Yugi expected.

"Yugi, I was wondering . . . could I borrow your deck next week?"

"You mean the one you gave me? That's still your deck, I thought. Besides, what do you need it for?"

"There's an event next week, a tournament for charity, and I was one of the players invited. Now, I wouldn't usually mind making a new deck, but Mr. Pegasus, the organizer of the tournament, thinks it would be best for me to show up with the deck I used during my tournament days."

"Well, yeah, you can borrow it whenever you want. Want any help getting ready for the event? You know, in case you're feeling a little rusty."

"Rusty? Me? Never. Although, if you really want to . . . "

Yugi grinned. He was about to learn a lot from the master.

_____________________________________________________________

The week went by quickly for Yugi. He did little during that week except go to school, eat, sleep, and play Duel Monsters. Despite his optimistic talk, Yugi could tell that his grandfather was a _little_ rusty. Still, by the end of the week, he had gotten most of his skill and luck back. When he got on the plane that would take him to the tournament, Yugi figured that he was as ready as he would ever be.

While his grandfather was at this tournament (it was being held on Saturday night, and his grandfather would be returning at some point on Sunday), he would be staying with a friend. Saturday night, however, he was going over to Nikita's to watch the tournament. He wasn't sure why she had gotten so excited over it, but he didn't pay that any mind. It was probably because she knew one of the competitors. That was it.

_____________________________________________________________

As it turned out, that wasn't it at all.

"Pegasus is doing this to give the rest of us a heads-up on what the big guns are playing."

"What do you mean?"

Yugi and Tea looked to Nikita for an answer. She quickly obliged.

"All we've been told is that it's eight of the highest ranked players in the world. All eight decks have been invited to Duelist Kingdom. That means that anyone watching can prepare for what the pros are using."

"But, why can't they just use different decks?"

"Pride, mostly. Plus, there's not enough time to build a good deck and try it out enough times to be proficient with it. It's an evil trick, but man is it a good one."

Yugi had a lot to say on that subject, but was interrupted by the announcer.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the host of tonight's event, Mr. Pegasus J. Crawford."

Pegasus was a tall man with long silver hair. He was dressed in a red suit, and there was something over his left eye, although his hair was positioned to cover it. He stepped up to a microphone sitting near a large chair, from which he would preside over the tournament.

"Welcome, one and all, to Industrial Illusions' first charity tournament. Now, note this place, viewers, because in a few weeks we will have the Duelist Kingdom finals on this very Duel Field. But enough of that now. Let's meet the contestants for tonight's tournament!"

Seven men and one young woman stepped out into the glare of the spotlights. Yugi recognized his grandfather, but drew a blank on most of the other seven. Fortunately, Nikita was able to point them out.

"All right, that one on the far left is Vellian Crowler, the so called 'Duel Professor'. European continental champion for two years running. Next to him is Keith Howards, or as he prefers, 'Bandit'. American national champion, finished fourth in last year's world championship."

"Who's the girl?"

"Rose Clementine. Finished second in the American nationals. Everyone's making a big deal about her because she just came out of nowhere last year. Overrated, if you ask me."

"And then there's Yugi's grandfather, Seto Kaiba . . . who are the other three?"

"From left to right, there's Amnael Banner, the German national champ and second in the European standings. Next is Zane Truesdale, although I can't remember seeing him for a while. Then the last one is Vance Serratus. All I know about him is that he keeps landing in the top four of most big tournaments. Never wins, but typically does well enough to get by."

Nikita had more to say, but was interrupted by Pegasus on the TV.

"Now, the pairings have been selected randomly. The first duel tonight is . . . Keith Howards and Amnael Banner! If you two will step forward, we can get this underway. Now, for the rest of you, a stateroom has been prepared for you to wait and relax before and after your turn to duel. All right, let's get underway!"

_____________________________________________________________

Bandit, Banner and Yugi's grandfather remained in the main area; the rest of the duelists were in the stateroom, talking to each other and taking advantage of the free refreshments. Crowler held a large glass of wine in one hand, while the other was occupied with his cigarette holder. Zane and Kaiba were both sitting down, although on opposite ends of the room. Vance had a game of solitaire going on the table next to him, while Rose picked at the expensive spread set up. An extravagantly large TV was showing the duel between Howards and Banner. Rose was the first to break the silence.

"Ah don't know what Ah was thinking, signing up for this." (Author's Note: Rose is from the South. Think the 'Southern Belle' accent, not the Foghorn Leghorn one.)

"What, you mean you actually don't care about . . . who are you playing for, again?"

"Some cancer foundation, Ah think. The point is, this is just a publicity event for most of us, rahght?"

Crowler and Zane voiced their agreement. Vance shook his, while Kaiba sat, staring at the others. Rose looked at Vance.

"So, if this isn't a publicity thing, why are you doing it?"

"Old man Mutou is undefeated in tournament play. Odds are he's using the same deck he used to tear through all those other pro players. And I intend to break that record of his."

Zane let out a bark of laughter, and was quickly followed by Crowler and Rose. Kaiba raised his hands and steepled his fingers, looking at Vance above the tips. Crowler was the first to recover.

"You, beat Solomon Mutou? Where would you get such a ludicrous idea? Let me tell you something. I've never beaten Solomon, but I've beaten you. Thus, you cannot possible beat him. Simply inconceivable."

Rose was gripping her sides; she'd laughed so hard that it was inaudible now, expressed by a full-body heaving. Zane was still chuckling a little. Kaiba still said nothing, watching the other duelists like a hawk. His eyes flitted to the wall as the next match-up was announced.

"You know, little girl, you're up. And it looks like you get first crack at Goliath."

Rose stopped heaving immediately. Her face had frozen in a look of utter helplessness. She looked up at the screen, which was showing her picture next to Solomon Mutou's. Swallowing hard, she left the room as Bandit and Banner walked in. Banner sat down facing the TV while Bandit went over to the buffet. Kaiba sat forward in his chair a little as Solomon and Rose took their places on the Duel Platform. He wanted to beat the best, and one last little study couldn't hurt.

_____________________________________________________________

"Duelists, begin!"

Rose was more than a little nervous, but she was determined to make a good show of her duel. She looked at her hand. Nothing stellar, but she could make do.

"I'll start with Bean Soldier, in Attack Mode!"

Her monster was literally that: an oversized bean with arms and legs, carrying a sword. Its attack wasn't that impressive, but hopefully it would make Solomon think she was inexperienced, get him to tone his strategy down enough for her to beat him. Hopefully, it worked.

"I summon Rude Kaiser in Attack Mode. Rude Kaiser, attack Bean Soldier!"

An armored, reptilian humanoid took a slash at Rose's monster with one of the axe blades attached to its gauntlets. The Bean Soldier disintegrated, and Rose's Life Points dropped, though not as much as she thought they would have. (Rose: 1600; Solomon: 2000) Fortunately, she had several monsters to deal with Solomon's.

"I play Fairy King Truesdale, and equip it with Vile Germs. Now, Truesdale, attack!"

The delicate being Rose had summoned raised its hand, and vines covered in thorns shot up around Rude Kaiser. They quickly wrapped around it and squeezed until the monster burst. (Rose: 1600; Solomon: 1300) She grinned like a fiend.

"Your move, old man. Got anything left for me to destroy?"

Solomon drew his card, looked at it, and then placed a monster face-down. He followed this by playing a card face-down in the spell and trap section. Rose snorted a little.

"_This_ is what the undefeated play style is like? Turtle up and wait for the other person to deck out? Time to break your record. First, I switch Fairy King Truesdale to Defense Mode. This activates his effect, which gives all Plant monsters an additional 500 attack and defense. Next, I summon Gigaplant in Attack Mode. Gigaplant, attack his face-down monster!"

Rose's monster, a grotesque hybrid of tree and Venus fly trap, chomped down on Solomon's monster, a small green furry creature. Solomon didn't react the way Rose had hoped he would; he simply drew his card without saying anything.

"I summon Gaia the Fierce Knight. Your turn."

_It's a bluff. He's got some nasty card face-down_. Rose looked at her hand. Nothing to clear out Solomon's face-down cards. But, she reasoned, why wouldn't he have used whatever it was on her last attack? It seemed stupid for him to hold off like that. She decided to go for it.

"Gigaplant, attack Gaia!"

As soon as she uttered the command, Rose knew that she'd screwed up. Solomon smiled.

"I activate my Spellbinding Circle, trapping your Gigaplant and reducing his attack by 700 points!"

Rose was stunned. She could normally read her opponents so easily, she'd gotten overconfident, and now she was going to lose. Solomon drew his card.

"First, I play Horn of the Unicorn, granting my monster an additional 700 attack points. Next, I play Stop Defense on your Fairy King Truesdale, switching him to Attack Mode. Now, Gaia, attack Fairy King Truesdale!"

Rose watched her monster disintegrate. (Rose: 1100; Solomon: 1300) She was done. She couldn't switch her Gigaplant into Defense Mode while it was stuck in Solomon's trap, and Gaia now had well more than enough attack to finish her next turn. Her shoulders slumped. She'd outthought herself, and now had to pay the price. She laid her hand on top of her deck, signaling a forfeit.

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"Well, learned the hard way about Mutou's strategy, have we?"

Rose spun on a dime, hurling the metal case she carried her deck in at Crowler's head. She was a little off; the deck box neatly obliterated the ash on the tip of his cigarette before slamming into the wall. If Vance had still been sitting there, it might have taken his head off; fortunately for him, he and Zane had been called to play the next match, and so had left before Rose's outburst. Bandit looked over and decided to wait a little bit before he tried talking to her. All the while, Kaiba watched the TV. Better to be too prepared, he thought, instead of going in blind.

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After the first round, Pegasus called out the four duelists who had won their matches. Solomon, Bandit, Vance and Kaiba stood there, waiting for the match-ups for the next round to be announced. The other four duelists were waiting on the upper level of the arena, from which they would watch the rest of the tournament. Finally, the match-ups were shown: Kaiba versus Vance, and Solomon versus Bandit. Kaiba and Vance went to opposite sides of the Duel Platform, while Solomon and Bandit went to the upper level to watch. Vance grinned at Kaiba.

"Ready to lose, rich boy?"

Kaiba didn't bother answering. This shook Vance a little; he was used to getting under the other duelist's skin, making them angry enough to possibly make a mistake. Apparently, that wasn't going to work against Kaiba. He sighed a little. _Time to go to work_. The judge determined that Vance was to go first. He drew. _Not bad, but not stellar either_.

"I summon Guardian Sphinx in Attack Mode. Your move."

Kaiba looked at the cards in his hand. He'd seen this deck before, at the last world tournament. Vance had gotten blown out in the third round due to bad draws, but Kaiba had seen enough during the first two matches to know his style. However, he wasn't going to make the mistake of overthinking this one like Rose had. Better to play it safe, and wait for the American to slip up.

"I play Swordstalker in Attack Mode, and attack Guardian Sphinx!"

A purple man with a large sword lunged forward, slicing Vance's sphinx in half. (Kaiba: 2000; Vance: 1700) Kaiba didn't celebrate; the odds were good that Vance was going to pull some more powerful monster out of his deck. As it turned out, he was right.

"I summon Sphinx Teleia in Attack Mode, and attack Swordstalker!"

A white feline with a human head and large wings pounced on Kaiba's monster, tearing it apart. (Kaiba: 1500; Vance: 1700) Kaiba drew, and placed his Mystic Horseman in Defense Mode. He didn't have anything in hand that could beat Vance's sphinx at the moment, but that could change quickly. Vance responded by playing a card face-down, and then having his sphinx destroy Kaiba's monster. (Kaiba: 725; Vance: 1700) Kaiba drew, and felt the situation shift.

"I play Blue-Eyes White Dragon in Attack Mode, and one card face-down. Blue-Eyes, attack Sphinx Teleia!"

Vance's sphinx dissolved under the onslaught of Kaiba's dragon. (Kaiba: 725; Vance: 1200) The other duelists watched in awe; everyone had heard of the Blue-Eyes White dragon, but only Crowler had ever played against it. Supposedly, there were only four in existence; Kaiba had three of them, but no one had ever heard of a player with the fourth one. Vance tried not to let that faze him. He drew and let out a whoop.

"I summon Criosphinx, and then sacrifice him to play Exxod, Master of the Guard. Now, I turn over my face-down card, Shield and Sword, switching the attack and defense of all monsters on the field. Now, Exxod, let him have it!"

"Not while I have anything to say about it. I trigger my Negate Attack!"

A void opened in front of Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon, absorbing Exxod's attack. Vance watched as Exxod's statistics returned to their normal arrangement. He was sitting on a monster in Attack Mode with no attack points, and Kaiba had one of the most powerful monsters in the game ready to take him out. Still, better to go out a loser than a quitter. He ended his turn, ready for the attack that would end his run in this tournament.

_____________________________________________________________

Kaiba stepped up to his side of the Duel Platform. As he'd expected, Solomon had beaten Bandit. Now he had the chance to beat the best. He wasn't going in expecting to win, like Rose and Vance had, but he certainly was going in prepared to lose. He just had to rely on his abilities and hope his studying paid off. The computer determined that Solomon would go first, and he drew his card to start off the duel.

"I play Giant Soldier of Stone in Attack Mode, and play my Prohibition card, naming Blue-Eyes White Dragon."

No one noticed the golem that stood in front of Solomon. They were all abuzz over his play with the Prohibition card. Now, Kaiba couldn't play any of his Blue-Eyes White Dragons, which, most of them thought, severely reduced the aggressiveness of his deck. Kaiba looked at his hand, where one of his Blue-Eyes' was now rendered useless. He had several other options, and decided to exercise one of them.

"I play Polymerization, fusing my Battle Ox and my Mystic Horseman into the Rabid Horseman. Now, Rabid Horseman, attack Giant Soldier of Stone!"

Kaiba's monster, an armored centaur with the head of a minotaur, swung its axe, cleaving through Solomon's golem. (Solomon: 1300; Kaiba: 2000) Solomon drew his card and summoned a monster in Defense Mode. Kaiba drew, and found himself with two Blue-Eyes' in hand now. Not good. If this kept up, he'd soon have a hand full of worthless cards. Unless . . . there was one card that would help him lose his now-useless dragons and possibly win the game at the same time. All he had to do was draw the other two cards. He had his Rabid Horseman attack Solomon's monster, and waited for the older duelist to draw his card. As soon as it was drawn, Kaiba knew he was in trouble.

"I play Black Luster Ritual, discarding Griffore, Mammoth Graveyard and Kuriboh to summon my Black Luster Soldier! Now, destroy Rabid Horseman!"

Solomon's monster, a warrior in blue and gold armor, leapt forward, slashing into Kaiba's horseman. (Solomon: 1300; Kaiba: 1000) Kaiba drew, and found his third Blue-Eyes. Only one more card to go, but he had to live a little longer to find it. Taking one of his other cards, he set it face-down. His Grappler would have to take the blow. Solomon attacked, destroying Kaiba's reptilian monster. Kaiba looked at his deck. He couldn't keep up a steady stream of monsters; he had to draw the card he needed, and fast, before Solomon beat him. He drew.

"I play Polymerization, fusing my three Blue-Eyes White Dragons in my hand to create my ultimate monster, the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!"

Not a sound was heard. Everyone watching, both at the duel itself or watching on the TV, was stunned. A massive three-headed white dragon the size of a large tree appeared in front of Kaiba. The hologram was almost too big to fit in the grossly oversized room Pegasus was holding the duel in. Solomon's Black Luster Soldier was almost invisible compared to the dragon. And then it attacked, unleashing a torrent of energy that vaporized Solomon's warrior. (Solomon: 0; Kaiba: 1000) With that, Kaiba turned around and exited his side of the Duel Platform, leaving nothing but silence and incredulity in his wake.

_____________________________________________________________

Nikita was the first to say anything.

"Holy crap. That's gotta be an invitational card. No way Pegasus printed up a large number of those for distribu . . . Yugi? You okay, little buddy?"

Yugi was still staring at the screen. The announcer was saying something, but Yugi didn't hear a word of it. The image of that massive dragon was burned into his mind. He had no idea he'd have to face something like _that_. Was this what he had to expect in Duelist Kingdom? And if it was, what hope did he have of beating it?


	3. Chapter 3

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own most of the characters in this project.

Disclaimer: No slash, no hentai. It's a project involving dueling. If you don't like it, that's entirely your problem. I just don't see the appeal in having Kaiba nail Yugi, or whatever the fad is right now.

Author's Note: This one's a little shorter, because I didn't want to start Duelist Kingdom in the middle of a chapter. Next chapter, it begins.

**Chapter 3**

It was three days until the Duelist Kingdom tournament. Around the world, duelists were making final preparations, tweaking their decks to find the right balance of cards. Nikita was practicing with her deck nonstop, trying to prepare herself for the competition. Yugi was practicing too, but he wasn't as thrilled as he had been two weeks ago. Both Nikita and Tea knew Yugi had something on his mind, but neither of them could figure out what it was. Nikita thought it was just a little stage fright; she neglected to mention that she'd thought of that because she was suffering from it. Tea thought it was something more, not knowing that she was right.

Ever since he'd seen Kaiba obliterate his grandfather in Pegasus' charity tournament a week and a half ago, Yugi had begun to seriously doubt his chances in the tournament. He kept seeing Kaiba's Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon in his head, wiping out his formerly unbeatable deck in one shot. And what if other players used cards like that? How could he compete with that kind of power, with himself being only an amateur at best?

On this particular day, Yugi had decided not to playtest his deck, choosing instead to spend the day wandering Domino. He had his deck with him, although he didn't know why; something about bringing it had felt right to him. He watched a pair of kids about his age coming out of a store. They looked carefree, happy. Yugi envied them. They probably had their own problems, but they weren't worried about them right now. Sighing, he kept walking. It took him a little while to notice that he was being followed by a car. In fact, he only really noticed it when it pulled up next to him. The driver's window opened, and a man in a suit leaned out of it.

"Yugi Mutou? You need to come with me."

"Why?"

"You'll find out when we get to my destination. Just get in."

"I really don't think-"

"Look, I don't need this argument. My boss wants you to get in the car, so just get in before he gets fed up with me."

Yugi thought about it for half a minute, and then got into the car.

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Yugi looked out the window of the car as they approached the house. It was fairly large, but not ostentatiously so. They were far enough away from Domino that the owner had a large, manicured lawn. Surprisingly, there wasn't much in the way of decoration, not even a birdbath or artificial pond. The place was too meticulous, too . . . _ordered_, for someone to actually live in. All this was taken in as the car slid perfectly in front of the front door. The driver got out and opened Yugi's door for him. He exited the car and walked up to the door, which opened as he approached. Another suit was there, leading him inside the house.

Yugi got a good look around. At least three of the rooms were libraries, full of more books than Yugi had ever seen in one room. As with the exterior, decorations were sparse; no pictures on the walls, no statues, nothing that one would expect in a house like this. He was led to a door, which the suit opened for him. Once he was inside, Yugi saw that the room was covered in chalkboards covered in writing so small that it was nearly impossible to read. In the center of the room was a chair with its back facing Yugi. As soon as the door closed, the chair spun around, and Yugi realized with a start that it was Seto Kaiba sitting in the chair. Yugi had seen him in school, and of course, on TV when they were covering the World Championship for Duel Monsters, but Kaiba had always been distant, aloof. The fact that he had invited Yugi here was almost unthinkable; no one was ever seen near Kaiba anywhere he went. While Yugi was still trying to figure out what he was doing here, Kaiba spoke.

"Yugi. So glad you could make it."

"Wh-why am I here? I mean, it's not like we really know each other all that well, so-"

"You're here because you've lost your confidence. You see, I've been watching your deck since I started playing, and lately, I've been watching _you_. You're talented, but talent will not be enough to take you to the top. If you want to spend the rest of your life in obscurity, fine. But, if not, follow me."

Kaiba stood up and walked towards a door on the eastern side of the room. Yugi wasted no time in following him. Up a set of stairs he went, wondering what Kaiba was up to. Was this some kind of prank? That wasn't very likely; as far as he could tell, Kaiba didn't have much of a sense of humor. Granted, Yugi didn't know all that much about Kaiba's personality. For all he knew, this _was_ some kind of elaborate joke. Still, he had a feeling that whatever Kaiba was doing, it was serious.

Kaiba opened a door at the top of the stairs, and Yugi followed him through. He stopped as soon as he crossed the threshold. The room he was in housed a collection of trophies and other objects, the exact opposite of the area downstairs. Yugi slowly turned his head around, taking in all the awards. He stopped when he noticed an ill-kept display buried in one of the corners. Inside were a pair of items that, while the same golden color of the trophies, couldn't possibly been mistaken for them. One was a forearm-length rod with a pair of wing-like pieces coming off the top. The other was an upside-down pyramid. Both had an eye carved into them. Kaiba noticed Yugi staring at them and grinned a little. He'd been right about Yugi's suitability. Now, all he had to do was get Yugi to take one of the items. He had a good idea of how to do it. Walking over to the case, he pulled out the pyramidal one.

"This is the Millennium Puzzle. Supposedly, there are a lot of these items, but I've only seen these two. It's supposed to have mystic powers, although I've never figured out if that's true or not. Here, catch."

Kaiba lobbed the Puzzle at Yugi, who barely managed to catch it before it hit the floor. It was heavy, which meant it was real gold, not the crappy stuff used to coat cheap jewelry. He looked at it, and then shook his head.

"I can't take this. I appreciate the offer, but-"

"You can take it, and you will. It's a gift, and it will help you out of this funk you've been in."

"It's just . . . it wouldn't be right . . . "

"I tell you what. We'll duel for it. If you win, you choose whether or not to keep it. If I win, you have to take it."

"Um, okay. But, where are we going to duel? I mean-"

Kaiba clapped his hands twice, and the floor split underneath them, taking Kaiba to one side, and Yugi to the other. Between the halves of the floor was a grid like the ones on the Duel Platforms he'd played on. The floor plates stopped moving, and a player terminal rose up in front of him. Yugi was stunned, but at the same time realized that he shouldn't be. Kaiba supposedly ran the company that built the Duel Platform. It only made sense that Kaiba, being the owner of the company and one of the world's greatest duelists, would have one installed. He placed his deck on its spot on his side, but in his heart he wasn't sure this was a good idea. His deck had been beaten by Kaiba just a few days ago; it would probably lose again, and just as quickly. Getting the nod from Kaiba, he drew his cards and took his turn.

"I play . . . I play Zombie Warrior, in Defense Mode. Go."

Kaiba shook his head, and then grabbed a card from his hand.

"I play Ryu-Kishin Powered, and attack your Zombie Warrior!"

Kaiba's gargoyle slashed Yugi's undead in half. (Kaiba: 2000; Yugi: 2000) Yugi drew another card, laid his Mammoth Graveyard in Defense Mode, and played a card face-down in his back row. Kaiba shook his head.

"You can't always win by holding out for the perfect hand! Seize the initiative, and fight! Ryu-Kishin, attack!"

Yugi's skeletal mammoth collapsed under Kaiba's attack. Yugi looked at his hand. While his choices weren't optimal, he did have a card to beat Kaiba's monster.

"I play Curse of Dragon. Now, attack Ryu-Kishin!"

Yugi's serpentine dragon twisted around and shot a blast of fire at Kaiba's monster. (Kaiba: 1600; Yugi: 2000) Kaiba thought about giving Yugi some kind of encouragement, but decided that it would have to wait until after the duel. He drew.

"I summon Judge Man in Attack Mode, and play a card face-down. Judge Man, attack Curse of Dragon!"

Kaiba's warrior smashed Yugi's dragon with a pair of large morningstars. (Kaiba: 1600; Yugi: 1800) Yugi looked at his hand. Nothing that could beat Judge Man straight-up, but he did have . . .

"I play Meteor Dragon, and equip him with the Horn of the Unicorn! Meteor Dragon, attack Judge Man!"

A stubby dragon covered in a round ball of rock shards rose up in front of Yugi. A golden horn grew out of its forehead, and it unleashed a torrent of flaming rocks at Kaiba's warrior. (Kaiba: 1300; Yugi: 1800) Kaiba drew his card. He'd drawn what had to be one of the most powerful cards in his deck. He debated internally on whether or not to play it yet. Certainly Yugi had to learn about cards like this, but was it appropriate to do so now? He decided to wait a little bit before playing it. Instead, he took another card out of his hand.

"I play Hitotsu-Me Giant in Defense Mode, and play a card face-down."

Kaiba's cyclopean monster loomed over the field, even in Defense Mode. Yugi played his Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress #1 and had it attack Kaiba's giant. Kaiba drew, and decided that it was time.

"I summon Saggi the Dark Clown in Defense Mode, and play a card face-down."

"Fine by me. Meteor Dragon, attack Saggi!"

"Always assume your opponent has a plan when he plays a face-down card. Like this one! I trigger the Crush Card Virus, sacrificing Saggi to destroy all your monsters with an attack of 1500 or more!"

A cloud of spores shot out of Saggi. Meteor Dragon dissolved as soon as they touched him. Yugi's other dragon was unaffected, but the monsters in Yugi's hand and deck weren't. Yugi looked at his now decidedly slimmer deck and swallowed hard Kaiba had, in one shot, taken his chance to win away. Yugi lifted his hand, ready to forfeit, but Kaiba barked something across to him.

"Never quit! Every duelist has one or two strategies for every situation. Learn yours! Now, I summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon to the field. Blue-Eyes, attack Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress #1 with White Lightning!"

Kaiba's dragon blasted Yugi's, and the attack cost him most of his Life Points. (Kaiba: 1300; Yugi: 200) Yugi looked at his hand, but found nothing that could help. He had one monster, his Celtic Guardian, but that wouldn't do anything to Kaiba's dragon. None of his traps would work either. Kaiba wasn't likely to play another monster, so Mirror Force wouldn't help him. And even with the de-buff provided by Spellbinding Circle, none of his monsters came even close to the Blue-Eyes' modified attack. He was dead, and was just now realizing it. Still, he wasn't going to quit. He saw the wisdom of Kaiba's teaching. Get used to quitting, and it became a natural thing. _All right. Come and get me_.

_____________________________________________________________

Yugi looked at the Millennium Puzzle. As per the agreement before their duel, Yugi had to take it. Kaiba had said that it might help him, but he wasn't sure how. But, Kaiba had wanted him to have it, and so it was now his. He just hoped he could figure out what it could do before he left for Duelist Kingdom in a couple of days. If he was going to need it, he'd rather not find that out too late.


	4. Chapter 4

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own most of the characters in this project.

Disclaimer: No slash, no hentai. It's a project involving dueling. If you don't like it, that's entirely your problem. I just don't see the appeal in having Kaiba nail Yugi, or whatever the fad is right now.

**Chapter 4**

Yugi sat up slowly, shaking the fog of sleep out of his head. He'd thought that he would never get any sleep, but he had. Getting up, he walked groggily to the shower area in his cabin. Bending over the sink, he splashed cold water in his face, awakening himself instantly. Grabbing his shirt, he almost missed the talisman he'd had for the past couple of days. He slipped his shirt on, and then hung the Millennium Puzzle around his neck. He still hadn't figured out what it did, but Kaiba had insisted he take it.

Now that he was dressed, Yugi walked out of his cabin and out onto the deck of the ship he was riding on. He had been a little surprised that the Duelist Kingdom Tournament was being held on an island, but he figured that it was a place where the players wouldn't get distracted by fanboys-and-girls. Plus, it was so much larger than a convention center, which meant that it wouldn't be as tightly packed as most tournaments. It seemed a little odd, but Pegasus, the owner of Industrial Illusions and creator of Duel Monsters, was said to be a little eccentric, and apparently there were enough people that supported his eccentricity. The potential at three million dollars didn't hurt, either.

As soon as the boat docked, Yugi headed for the gangplank. He went down with the rest of the participants, plus a few people that had stowed away in order to watch the tournament; Tea, his friend, was one of the latter. Yugi was wondering where she was when he bumped into someone. He was halfway through a muttered apology when he got a good look at the person he'd hit. Whoever he was, he was tall and pale, but that was all Yugi could get from him. His entire body was covered by a hooded black robe with a crimson eye on the chest; Yugi could barely make out his chin in the shadows of the hood. He simply pushed Yugi aside and went down with the other duelists. Yugi watched him walk, hoping that he would just fade away, as though he were an illusion brought on by stress and excitement. He did not. _Great. Who invited him? I bet_-

But whatever he was thinking was blown away when Tea caught up with him. She looked a little rumpled, and he couldn't blame her. Since she didn't have an invitation for the tournament, she'd had to sneak on the boat. This also meant she probably didn't get the chance to sleep or eat for the entire trip. When she got closer, Yugi noticed that she had little bags under her eyes; make that _definitely_ didn't get the chance to sleep.

"At some point, we're going to stop, and you are going to wait while I pass out to make up for the last two nights. Do you understand me?"

Yugi nodded. While they were heading down the gangplank, he looked around, trying to spot Nikita or Kaiba. He couldn't see either of them in the crowd. It was probably better if they didn't travel together; Nikita would probably challenge him first chance she got, and Yugi wasn't really in the mood to hear any more of Kaiba's lessons. He'd heard enough of those on the boat ride.

When all the duelists had gotten off the boat, a voice came over the hidden speakers mounted on the trees. Everyone present recognized Pegasus' voice immediately.

"Welcome, all of you, to the Duelist Kingdom Tournament! Now, the rules. There are Duel Platforms scattered all over the island. Choose the locations of your battles wisely. Now, all of you have the Duelist gloves and two Star Chips, correct? You wager the Star Chips when you battle one another. Once you collect ten, head for my castle. First eight duelists to get there with ten Star Chips are in the finals. Now, scatter to the winds, and may the best man win."

_____________________________________________________________

Yugi and Tea had been moving for about half-an-hour when Tea called out for them to stop. She curled up under one of the many trees nearby and was asleep instantly. Yugi sat down next to her and looked around. Fortunately, there was a Duel Platform in the clearing they were in, so he could duel someone if they found their way here. Hopefully someone would show up; he didn't want to go the whole day without playing against _someone_. Idly, he wondered whether or not Nikita or Kaiba had played anyone yet. That train of thought quickly went nowhere. Soon, he found himself bored. To relieve it, he tried taking apart the Millennium Puzzle, but the pieces were stuck together; he couldn't get them apart. Letting it rest against his chest, he closed his eyes. This was going to be a long-

"You!"

Yugi opened his eyes to find himself looking at a blond girl about his age. She was wearing a white tanktop, denim skirt and a red bandanna with a blue V filled with stars. Despite the change of wardrobe, he recognized her: Rose Clementine, the girl that had lost to his grandfather in Pegasus' charity tournament. She didn't look all that happy right now.

"You and me. Right now. Ah've got to settle this once and for all."

It took Yugi a second to realize that he had been challenged to a duel. Pushing himself up off the ground, he followed Rose to the Duel Platform. Once they were on their respective sides, Rose nodded to Yugi to take the first turn.

"I play Koumori Dragon in Attack Mode. Your turn."

Rose started giggling, which quickly devolved into hysterical laughter.

"You are such an idiot! Did you even wonder why the tournament is spread out over the whole island? The Duel Platforms mimic the terrain, and each different type of terrain gives a boost to different cards. And in the forest, my Plant monsters are king! Ah summon Trent in Attack Mode, and have it attack Koumori Dragon!"

Rose's monster, a giant tree with the wizened face of an old man, smashed Yugi's dragon into the ground with a swing of its massive branch. (Rose: 2000; Yugi: 1800) Yugi was stunned. He hadn't even considered that Pegasus had a motive for spreading out the Duel Platforms. Now, he had to figure out what terrain was best for his deck. That is, if he managed to win this game.

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Joey shook his head, trying to keep himself awake. He'd thought he could get some sleep on the boat, but instead he'd had to keep in hiding in order to stay on the boat. He'd wanted to get into Duelist Kingdom somehow, and this had seemed like the best idea at the time. Now, however, the best idea was to find somewhere he could nap undisturbed for a while. He found a spot, but before he could lie down, he heard a raspy voice off his right side.

"Get up, you. I've been looking for someone to duel, and it might as well be you."

Joey turned his head and saw a scrawny-looking kid with blue-green hair. His face was dominated by both a pair of overly large glasses and a smirk. Joey thought he looked familiar, but he couldn't quite remember why. Shaking his head to clear it of the fog of tiredness, he got up and walked towards the Duel Platform sitting nearby. Getting up onto one of the terminals, he placed his deck on the proper spot for it. It was only when the other mentioned his wager that Joey remembered that he had no Star Chips. He blurted this out with a touch of surprise, and more than a little anger. His potential opponent grinned.

"Well, never let it be said that Weevil Underwood let a little thing like that to stop a duel. I tell you what; I'll let you substitute your deck for the Star Chips. I'll even give you my Duelist glove if you win. How does that sound?"

"All right. Now, let's go! I play Tiger Axe in Attack Mode. Your go."

Weevil grinned. It was pretty likely that this guy didn't have any cards worth putting in his deck, but there might be some worth selling or trading. Plus, in the unlikely event that he lost, he could just report this poor sap to one of Pegasus' referees and get him kicked off the island. Win-win. Looking at his cards, he found a potent game-ender sitting in his hand.

"I summon Flying Kamakiri #2, and play a card face-down. Now my pet, attack Tiger Axe!"

Joey watched as Weevil's giant mantis grabbed Tiger Axe in its forward claws and squeezed until his monster dissolved. (Joey: 1800; Weevil: 2000) Drawing, he decided to go more on the offensive.

"I summon Axe Raider, and order it to atta-"

"I turn over my Parasite Worm! Your monster is destroyed, and you take damage equal to its attack!"

An enormous caterpillar rose up and wrapped around Axe Raider, biting its neck before both monsters faded out of existence. (Joey: 100; Weevil: 2000) This was going badly. _Very_ badly. Looking through his hand, he found himself thinking that he was going to lose his deck soon if he didn't get something to help himself.

_____________________________________________________________

Kaiba paused a moment, letting his instincts rise to the front. He'd already won another two Star Chips, and was on the hunt for another opponent. This meant a good amount of traveling; whether or not you wanted to stay at a Duel Platform that supported your deck, the time would come where you had to move in order to find an opponent. Idly, he pulled the Millennium Rod out from between his belt and his pants, spinning it over his fingers in a rather impressive display of physical dexterity. It had taken him years to get his fingers timed right, and it was something he didn't want to lose.

The area he had come to was a barren cliff's edge. He walked to the edge and looked down at a foamy set of breakers pounding against the stone of the cliff. He walked over to the Duel Platform sitting near the edge. Half of the field was blasted desert, while the other half was water. It was a simple design, but effective; it gave anyone playing an aquatic deck a chance to really use those monsters, but didn't overwhelm those that didn't happen to be packing a deck full of Fish and Sea Serpent monsters. It looked like it would be a challenge. And a challenge would be greatly welcomed.

"You're Seto Kaiba, right?"

Kaiba nodded without turning; he'd figured that someone had been camping out at this Duel Platform. It was just too specialized for the right player to leave it alone. _Bring on the challenge_, he thought.

"I have four Star Chips. How many do you want to wager?"

"Four sounds good. All-or-nothing, right?"

Kaiba nodded again as he ascended the platform. His opponent got onto the side with the water terrain, just as Kaiba suspected. He put his deck on the platform and waited for his opponent to take his first turn.

"I summon Great White in Attack Mode."

Kaiba watched as a fin crested the water, and then sank back under. As soon as the ripples from the fin died down, he drew his card.

"I summon Judge Man in Attack Mode, and order it to attack your Great White!"

Kaiba's warrior swung one of its morningstars, catching his opponent's monster as it glided by the shore of Kaiba's half of the field. (Kaiba: 2000; Mako: 1600) Mako drew, shuffling his cards around in his hand before deciding on what to play. Finding something, he played a monster face-down, followed by a pair of cards in his Spell/Trap row. Kaiba grinned a little. Perhaps there would be a challenge after all.

_____________________________________________________________

Yugi looked through his hand. He had a few options on how to beat Rose's monster, but he had no idea what other monsters she had available to her. He didn't want to put himself in a worse position by underestimating her. His brain was working at a feverish pace, trying to sort through strategies, trying to find the perfect one for this particular situation. As he began to drift into panic, he suddenly found himself completely calm, though he didn't know why. There was a voice in his head, silently saying _Relax. Let your instincts guide you. You won't go wrong that way._ Closing his eyes, he shuffled his hand around, and then grabbed a card at random.

"I summon Curse of Dragon in Attack Mode! Now, Curse of Dragon, attack Trent!"

The flames washed over Rose's tree-monster, burning it to a crisp. (Rose: 1700; Yugi: 1800) Rose gritted her teeth and drew her next card.

"Ah play Darkworld Thorns in Defense Mode. Your turn."

Yugi drew and attacked, shattering Rose's pathetic monster. He nodded to her, and she drew her card, grinning suddenly when she saw the card in her hand.

"Gotcha! Ah summon Tytannial, Princess of Camellias, and lay one card face-down! Now, destroy his Curse of Dragon!"

A woman covered in flower petals rose in front of Rose, pointing at Yugi's dragon. A storm of petals shot from her hand like a cyclone, shredding it in an instant. (Rose: 1700; Yugi: 800) Yugi looked at his hand again. Red-Eyes Black Dragon, Polymerization, Meteor Dragon and Silver Fang. Without thinking, he grabbed Silver Fang and played it face-down. Rose responded by playing her Gigaplant, using it to destroy Silverfang. Yugi drew, knowing deep down what card he was getting before he looked at it.

"I play Polymerization, fusing my Red-Eyes Black Dragon with my Meteor Dragon, creating my Meteor Black Dragon! Next, I play Burning Land, which lets my dragon attack the field itself! Meteor Black Dragon, attack!"

Yugi's massive dragon inhaled with a mighty roar, and then spewed flames onto the field. Both of Rose's monsters got caught in the flames, disintegrating as the forest around them burst into a holographic inferno. (Rose: 0; Yugi: 800) Rose's jaw dropped when she saw her Life Points disappear. Furious, she threw her Star Chips across the Duel Platform at Yugi.

"This isn't over, boy. I'll get you for this."

And with that, she turned and walked away. Yugi picked up the Star Chips, placed them in his Duelist glove, and walked back over to sit next to Tea. Hopefully she would wake up soon. He wanted to tell her about his win, and hopefully have another duel before it got dark out.

_____________________________________________________________

Joey looked at his hand. He had a couple of lower-level monsters that could take out Weevil's Kamakiri monster, but with his Life Points obliterated, he didn't want to risk Weevil getting a bigger monster and wiping him out. Deciding to play it safe, he set his Armored Lizard face-down and ended his turn. Weevil thought this was funny.

"Not so hot now, are we? I summon Grasschopper, and order it to attack your face-down monster!"

Joey watched as his monster was destroyed by another of Weevil's insects. This was looking bad. Drawing, he placed a card face-down and played his Kojikocy in Defense Mode. Weevil gleefully attacked with his Kamakiri, leaving his Grasschopper in back in case Joey had a Trap hiding in his back row. Joey drew, and found that he had a plan.

"I summon my Flame Swordsman in Attack Mode, and equip him with my Salamandra, increasing his attack to 2500! Now, attack Flying Kamakiri #2!"

A dragon-shaped fireball shot out of the sword Joey's robed warrior wielded, engulfing Weevil's mantis monster. (Joey: 100; Weevil: 1000) Joey laughed at the look on Weevil's face.

"Yeah, that's right! I'm not just a punching bag! I got game!"

"You're dead now! I play Eradicating Aerosol, destroying my Grasschopper. Now, what could he be planning, you ask? I'm removing the Grasschopper and Flying Kamakiri #2 from play to summon my ultimate monster, the Doom Dozer!"

Joey watched as a giant millipede burst out of the ground, coiling around itself as it pulled itself out of the hole it had created. When it had fully come aboveground, it lowered its head to stare at Joey with large black eyes. Weevil cackled at this turn of events.

"Now, let's see how your little warrior fares against the mighty Doom Dozer! Annihilate Flame Swordsman!"

Joey grinned when he heard that.

"Should've gotten rid of that Parasite Worm of yours. If you had, I wouldn't be able to do this. I trigger Graverobber, which lets me play one of your cards from your Graveyard. Now, how's about you hand over those Star Chips?"

_____________________________________________________________

Kaiba looked at his hand. He found himself wondering what cards Mako had face-down. His Judge Man could probably take care of it – if it was able to take down his monster, Mako would have attacked with it – but just in case . . .

"I play Aqua Madoor in Defense Mode-"

"I turn over my Torrential Tribute card, destroying all monsters on the field. Now I draw a card for my turn, and summon Karyu-Shin in Attack Mode. Your turn."

_Now_ it was interesting. Mako diddn't just attack and wipe him out, despite the lack of rules prohibiting direct attacks, but now he had the field presence to keep Kaiba on the defensive. Looking through his hand, Kaiba put a monster face-down, hoping to draw Mako out. He didn't have to wait long.

"I summon Amphibian Beast, and I attack your face-down monster with it!"

Kaiba slid his card to the Graveyard. Drawing, he set another monster face-down, following it up with a card in his back row. _Only one or two more monsters, and this game is over._ He made a gesture to Mako, indicating that he was done with his turn. Mako drew, and then took a card out of his hand.

"I summon Ocean Dragon Daedelus in Attack Mode, and order it to attack your face-down monster!"

Kaiba watched as a serpentine monster reared its head out of the water. It opened a massive maw to reveal teeth like razor blades. Kaiba's Mystic Horseman flickered into reality for a second before Mako's serpent crushed it in its jaws. This situation had just elevated. Kaiba couldn't wait for Mako to play more monsters; he had to make do with what was there.

"I play my Blue-Eyes White Dragon! Blue-Eyes, attack the ocean and destroy his monsters!"

Kaiba's dragon reared its head back and unleashed a blast of lightning into the water. All three of Mako's monsters rose to the surface, thrashing around for a few seconds before exploding into digital shards. (Kaiba: 2000; Mako: 0) Mako shook his head, and then handed his Star Chips over to Kaiba. Kaiba shook his hand, and then turned to leave. It was still light out, and he wanted to find another game before the sun set.


	5. Chapter 5

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own most of the characters in this project.

Disclaimer: No slash, no hentai. It's a project involving dueling. If you don't like it, that's entirely your problem. I just don't see the appeal in having Kaiba nail Yugi, or whatever the fad is right now.

Note: For anyone trying to figure out the formula for attack reduction in Joey's duel with Copperhead, it's 50 Attack Points for each Level Star per turn

________________________________________________________________________

**Chapter 5**

Tea stretched her arms out, shaking her head to get the cobwebs out. Blinking a couple of times, she realized by the location of the sun and the shadows that it was early morning. Looking around, she saw Yugi curled up next to her. Upon further examination, she saw that they were still near the Duel Platform where she'd passed out yesterday. She felt kind of bad about that; Yugi had probably wanted to wander around a bit, maybe get in another duel or two on the first day. Hopefully she could make it up to him somehow. For right now, though, she had to go to the bathroom, badly.

After she was done, Tea headed back towards the spot where she and Yugi had spent the night. As she got closer, she could hear people talking nearby. Crouching in the bushes, she looked out to see a pair of people standing over Yugi, one male and one presumably female. The male had brown hair except for his bangs, which were light purple. His companion looked like a punk rocker's nightmare. She had piercings all over her face, and her hair was up in spikes dyed in a random assortment of screamingly neon colors. The two of them appeared to be arguing, and Tea listened closely to their words.

"-easier than playing a game against them, especially in this tournament. No one will know-"

"That's not how we operate. We give them a fair chance to protect their assets."

"But that's lame! Just take the cards you want from his deck and let's _go_. I want-"

"We wait until he wakes up and you duel him for the cards. Win and you're in our organization. Lose, and I kick you to the curb like a bag of trash. It's that simple."

Tea had heard enough. Standing up, she walked out from behind the bush. It pleased her a little to see the duo's reaction; both looked more than a little surprised. The female recovered first, though she still looked a little flustered at being spied on.

"Get out of here, kid. This doesn't concern you."

"It does concern me. What are you doing to my friend?"

Both of them looked at each other, and the woman raised an eyebrow at the guy, who looked more than a little angry. He turned to Tea and, before the woman could reply, spouted his response.

"We're waiting for you friend to wake up so we can get some cards from him. What's it to you?"

The woman slapped her forehead, clearly upset with the male's response. Tea was beginning to get a clearer picture of the duo's relationship. The woman thought she was in charge, and was trying to act as the spokesman for them. The guy, on the other hand, seemed like little more than a blowhard that was tagging along for the ride. Judging by the way they were acting, and the way they had been talking while she was hiding in the bushes, neither of them liked each other. Hopefully, she could use this to her advantage.

"How were you going to get the cards, anyway? Were you just going to beat him up and steal them from him, like thugs?"

The girl with the rainbow-colored hair bared her teeth at this, glaring at Tea as though Tea had said something obscene to her. The guy looked like he wanted to laugh, and actually put his hand over his mouth to keep himself from doing so. It didn't entirely work; a snort came from behind the guy's hand, causing the girl to glare at him instead of Tea. Tea decided to take it one step further.

"Or, am I just going to have to play against some amateur like your little goon over there?"

The guy stopped his laughter and turned a ferocious glare on his companion, who had started to giggle when she heard Tea's last statement. It was working, but Tea didn't know how much longer she could keep it up. Fortunately, she didn't have to do anything else.

"Fine. If you think you're so tough, why don't you fill in for your buddy there? Same wager we were going to make him, but you play for him. Sound fair?"

"Um . . . I don't-"

"Oh, don't tell me that you're nothing but talk. Come on, live a little or shut your mouth."

"Fine. Just . . . give me a minute, ok?"

Tea took a few deep breaths, trying to stop the thoughts racing through her head. It wasn't working. _What was I thinking? I'm no pro. I'm going to cost Yugi something important, and all because I couldn't keep my mouth shut._ For a moment, she thought she was going to throw up, but managed to keep that from happening. Turning back around, she motioned to the Duel Platform.

"What's the wager?"

The guy looked over at the girl, who sighed and reached into a deck box she wore on her waste.

"Good God, Rex, don't you carry any extra cards around with you?"

"You didn't tell me-"

"Whatever. Just realize that you need to provide for yourself if you get in."

Rex took the cards the girl handed to him and thumbed through an admittedly short stack.

"Hey, this is an Invitational card! There's no way you just happened to get one. 'Provide for yourself'. Bull!"

"Um, excuse me, but I'm still here. Are we going to play or not?"

Rex and the girl glared at each other, and then Rex mounted his side of the Duel Platform. Tea climbed up to her side, placing her deck in its appointed spot, mind still churning about what would happen if she lost. As she prepared herself for the game, she realized that she didn't know the wager.

"What are we betting, anyway?"

"Three Star Chips and three very rare cards for your boyfriend's deck."

"That's not fair! His deck is worth more than that!"

"Not as much as an Invitational card. We're actually being very generous with you. Take it or leave it."

Tea squirmed a little bit. It didn't seem right for her to play for Yugi's deck. If she lost, he'd be kicked out of the tournament, all because she couldn't keep her mouth shut. Taking a deep breath, she felt something spread through her mind. All of a sudden, her thoughts stopped racing and she began to calm down considerably. Letting her breath out, she made a signal that meant she was ready to duel. Drawing a card, she decided that she would go first.

"I summon Dark Witch in Attack Mode. Go"

A winged woman in a yellow dress rose up, hovering a few inches off the ground, spear at the ready. Rex looked doubtfully at his hand and drew. The card he drew made his expression change instantly from worried to sadistically gleeful.

"I play my Polymerization card, fusing my Two-Headed King Rex and Crawling Dragon #2 into the Bracchio-radius! Now, Bracchio-Radius, attack Dark Witch!"

Rex's oversized blue dinosaur swung its tail, sweeping Dark Witch off to the side. (Tea: 1600; Rex: 2000) Tea drew, and set a monster face-down. Rex smirked at her, envisioning in his head how quickly he was going to beat her.

"First, I play a card face-down, and then I order my dinosaur to attack your monster. Bracchio-Radius, smash it!"

Tea's monster, another angel, appeared under Bracchio-radius' foot before it landed. Tea gave a weak smile.

"That was my Shining Angel. Now, I get to play a Light monster from my deck!"

Tea picked up her deck and began searching through it, but she couldn't figure out what to play. In all honesty, she'd built her deck to have fun, so it was full of a bunch of angelic monsters with effects so varied that there were no real combos or tricks; the whole thing ran off of luck. She was beginning to panic when she noticed one of the cards in her deck. Stealing a glance at her hand, she found a deadly trick, even if it only worked once.

"I choose to summon my Honest, in Attack Mode! Is it my turn now?"

Rex made a motion with his hand signifying that he was done. Tea drew her card.

"Now, I activate the effect of my Honest, letting me return it to my hand. Next, I play Airknight Parshath and one card face-down. Now, I discard my Honest, giving my monster an attack bonus equal to your monster's attack. Airknight Parshath, attack Bracchio-radius!"

Tea's angel rose up in the air, flapping his wings downward at Rex's dinosaur. The wind picked up, and Rex's monster eroded under it. (Tea: 1600; Rex: 100) Rex blinked twice and shook his head. His companion got furious.

"You idiot! Why don't you just hand over those cards? Are you being intentionally dense, or are you just stupid?"

"Hey, shut up, Strings! I'm still going to win this! Now, I summon my ultimate monster, the Black Tyranno in Attack Mode! Black Tyranno, attack Airknight Parshath!"

Rex's titanic T-Rex opened its mouth and practically inhaled Tea's angel. (Tea: 900; Rex: 100) As it swallowed, it became stuck on something, and dissolved to bits. Rex was surprised, and it seemed, for a few seconds, that he would never comprehend what had just happened.

"How . . . how did that happen? Your angel only gets the boost for the one attack. There's no way-"

"I used my face-down card, Michizure. When one of my monsters gets destroyed, I can flip it to destroy one of your monsters in turn. Now what are you going to do without your 'ultimate monster'?"

"I trigger my face-down card, Fossil Excavation, which lets me summon my Black Tyranno back to the field by discarding a card from my hand. Now, I've still got my monster, and you've got nothing. Care to hand over your boyfriend's deck now?"

"Nah, I think I'll just take those cards you offered. I summon my Wingweaver, and order it to attack your Black Tyranno, wiping out both it and your remaining Life Points!"

Tea's six-winged angel unleashed a burst of holy energy, erasing Rex's monster. (Tea: 900; Rex: 0) Rex made a strangled noise, and then grabbed the cards and Star Chips he had wagered and turned to run off. Before he could get more than a few steps away, he stopped as though he had run into a brick wall. His accomplice took the wager from him and walked them over to Tea. As Tea took them, she noticed the pair of gold rings the woman wore on her middle fingers. They both had the same eye on them that Yugi's Millennium Puzzle had. She was about to ask about it, but decided that it would be a lot easier if she didn't. The woman nodded to her, turned, and walked off to the north, leaving Tea alone with a sleeping Yugi and an unconscious Rex. Sitting down, she began flipping through the cards she'd won, even though she probably wasn't going to keep any of them; she'd wagered Yugi's deck, and it was only fair if he got the winnings.

_____________________________________________________________

Elsewhere on the island, a monitor showed Tea's Wingweaver blasting Rex's Black Tyranno into oblivion. Leaning back from the monitor, Pegasus grinned a little. Next to him, a little man who had called this to Pegasus' attention stood nervously, sweating despite the cold temperature.

"Should I have those two thrown off the island, sir?"

Pegasus' grin widened. Turning towards the little man, he almost laughed at the pathetic expression on the man's face.

"Nonsense. Although, I would very much like to meet this delightful young woman. Have it known to the door guard that she may enter if she is in the company of someone with the requisite ten Star Chips."

Waving his hand to indicate that the little man should leave, Pegasus rewound the tape of Tea's duel. _Interesting_.

_____________________________________________________________

Joey picked his way along the small wooden walkway that kept him from losing a shoe in the murky swamp on the southeastern part of the island. He felt like he'd been walking for hours, even though it was more like one. Turning his Duelist glove over, he grinned when he saw all the Star Chips he'd won. _Six down, four to go_, he thought.

As he walked, he noticed a Duel Platform sitting just off the path. Walking over, he saw someone napping on the path. When he got close enough, he saw that this guy had a number of Star Chips. Joey decided that he was going to take four of those Star Chips; it would be easier than dueling for them, and to be honest, what this guy didn't know wouldn't hurt him. He reached down to take the Star Chips, only to have something latch onto his arm. Pulling back, he yanked up the guy he'd thought was napping. The guy got to his feet, glaring at Joey.

"You were trying to sssteal from me, weren't you? I think you were. And I get nasssty when people try to sssteal from me. You dig?"

Joey nodded, trying not to let this guy know how ferocious a grip he had. He tried wriggling his arm free, only to have that grip tighten. The man let go suddenly, and Joey staggered backwards into the railing of the walkway. He massaged his arm, amazed that it wasn't broken. The guy pointed to the Duel Platform. As he did, Joey got a good look at him. His skin looked like there were patches of scales mixed in, and a massive snake tattoo ran up one arm and down the other. All of a sudden, recognition flooded Joey's mind. This was Copperhead, a top-ranked duelist known for a renegade style of play. No one knew his real name, and he never offered one.

"We play. You win, you can have those Ssstar Chipsss. You lossse, and I get everything. Ssseemsss like a better offer than othersss would make. You ssshould take it."

Joey nodded, and Copperhead mounted his side of the Duel Platform. Joey rubbed his arm and went to his side of the Duel Platform. He was a little worried; Copperhead had a reputation for viciousness whenever he played, and Joey felt that he would take it worse for trying to steal from him. Drawing his cards, he watched as Copperhead made the first move.

"I sssummon my Venom Boa in Attack Mode, and end my turn."

Joey looked through his hand, praising the fact that Copperhead's monsters didn't get a power boost from this terrain. The giant blue snake sitting in front of him was bad enough now, but with a field boost it would have been a nightmare. Grabbing a monster from his hand, he prepared to go on the offensive.

"I summon Giltia the Dark Knight in Attack Mode, and order it to attack your Venom Boa!"

Joey's warrior skewered Copperhead's monster on its spear, pinning the writhing snake to the ground until it vanished. (Copperhead: 1750; Joey: 2000) Joey signaled that his turn was over, and watched as, suddenly, Giltia's attack dropped down to 1600.

"What the . . . how did that-?"

"You're sssuch a fool. Sssome terrain doesssn't sssimply boossst attack pointsss. Thisss field decreasssesss the attack of non-Reptilesss at the end of your turn. Now, watch and learn. I play Botisss, and order it to attack Giltia!"

Joey's knight was slashed in half by the sword wielded by Copperhead's reptilian warrior. (Copperhead: 1750; Joey: 1900) Joey drew, and looked at his hand. Right now, he had nothing that could both stand up to Copperhead's monster and remain effective after the swamp drained attack points. Grimacing, he played his Kojikocy in Defense Mode. Copperhead drew and summoned another monster, this one a two-legged lizard he called Gagagigo. He then used that monster to attack Joey's monster and destroy it. Joey swallowed. If he didn't draw something to stop Copperhead's monsters, he was in trouble.

"What'sss the matter? SSScared that you're going to lossse? Guessss you shouldn't had tried to sssteal from me in the first place."

Joey blocked out Copperhead's words and drew his card. For a second, he wondered how that particular card had gotten into his deck, but then remembered. He had won the card from another duelist last night, and had been wanting to try it out. This seemed like as good a time as any.

"I summon my Tri-Horned Dragon in Attack Mode. Tri-Horned Dragon, attack Gagagigo!"

Joey's dragon roared and charged Copperhead's lizard-man, goring it. (Copperhead: 750; Joey: 1900) Copperhead grimaced and switched his monster into Defense Mode; even with its reduced attack, Tri-Horned Dragon was still stronger than anything he had in his hand. Joey played his own face-down card, and then had his dragon attack Copperhead's monster. Copperhead drew and grinned.

"Ssso long, lossser. I play Tribute to the Doomed, dissscarding a card to dessstroy your dragon. Then, I remove four (_AN: including the one he just discarded to use Tribute to the Doomed_) Reptilesss from play to sssummon my Evil Dragon Ananta. Ananta, wipe him from the field!"

A seven-headed serpent lunged forward towards Joey, only to sink into the swampy terrain. (Copperhead: 150; Joey: 1900) Copperhead snarled in stunned disbelief as Joey turned over his face-down card.

"Sorry chump, but my Chasm of Spikes not only destroys your monster, but also hits you back for a little damage. And now that you're defenseless, my Battle Steer hits you for the win!"

Copperhead threw his Star Chips across at Joey before stepping down from the Duel Platform and rushing off in anger. Joey grinned. Sometimes, he thought, it's good to be the king.

_____________________________________________________________

Kaiba looked around, trying to decide which way to go. One path led him into a canyon, while the other path led him across a plain. Unlike most of the other duelists, Kaiba didn't try to find one area that benefited his deck and camp out there; he liked the challenge of facing other players on their home turf. As he walked through the canyon, he found himself wondering if he would find anyone in here; Rock monsters weren't all that popular right now. Reaching the Duel Platform, he sat down, waiting for someone to show up.

His patience was eventually rewarded. Someone came down the canyon, heading straight for the Duel Platform. Taking a closer look, Kaiba saw that this person was wearing an oversized Duelist's glove. Whoever this was, he was one of the "player-killers" Pegasus had hired to thin out the flocks of duelists wandering the island. As the mystery duelist came closer, Kaiba realized that it was Vance, the same player he defeated during Pegasus' charity tournament three weeks ago.

"Vance, how's it been?"

"It's been fine. Now, prepared to leave the island?"

"Honestly, I didn't expect you to be someone's attack dog on a leash. What happened?"

"Better offer came up to play for the other side. Got to take those chances when you get them. Now, you need two Star Chips, but I am required to make the maximum wager, in order to take you out of the tournament. Company policy."

"Eight to two sounds good. Honestly, I've been waiting for wagers like that since I got on the island. Ready whenever you are."

Vance nodded, and both players drew their hands. Kaiba looked at his hand, ordering his cards into his all-around strategy.

"I summon Saggi the Dark Clown in Attack Mode, and play one card face-down. Your turn."

"That's it? Well, if you want to lose that badly, I'd be happy to oblige. I summon Hieracosphinx in Attack Mode, and order it to attack Saggi!"

A lion with the wings and head of a falcon charged Kaiba's garish clown. When Vance's monster hit Kaiba's, it shredded Saggi with its claws. (Kaiba: 200; Vance: 2000) As Kaiba's monster dissolved, a gray miasma formed on Vance's side of the field. His monster vaporized.

"How did you do that?"

"My Crush Card Virus destroys all of your monsters with an attack higher than 1500, leaving you wide open for a kill shot. Now, I summon my Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and order it to attack you directly!"

Kaiba's dragon wasted no time in unleashing its powerful attack at Vance. (Kaiba: 200; Vance: 0) Vance blinked once, and then pulled two Star Chips out of his Duelist's glove and handed them to Kaiba. Kaiba took them, and then slipped a business card into Vance's hand.

"If you ever want a change of scenery, call me. We always have openings for qualified individuals."

Vance looked the card over, nodded, and put it into his pocket. Without another word, the two of them turned and began walking away from each other, leaving the almost un-played-upon Duel Platform behind them.

_____________________________________________________________

"I don't know how it happened, but my mind just slowed down all of a sudden. I wasn't worried anymore, I could focus more . . . it was weird."

Yugi nodded his head as Tea talked. He was trying to figure out why both he and Tea had calmed down considerably during high-pressure duels when, by all rights, they should have been almost hysterical. Hefting the Millennium Puzzle, he found himself wondering if it was the source of their coolheadedness. Kaiba had said the item had powers, and maybe this was one of them. At the very least, it seemed like a decent good luck charm.

Tea slid the cards she had won out of her deck case and handed them over to Yugi. He thumbed through them. A rare ritual monster, the ritual card for it, and a card he'd never seen before. The picture depicted a black-skinned woman in a pink nightgown with wings coming out of the back. Puzzling over it for a minute, he handed it to Tea, who waved her hands in front of him.

"No way. I put your deck on the line, so all those cards are yours."

"It fits your deck theme. Besides, you were the one that dueled. You should be the one that keeps the card."

Tea sighed, but took the card and slid it back into her deck. While she did, Yugi looked around, trying to find a Duel Platform; he was still three Star Chips short of getting into the finals, and some of the spots might have already been taken. He had to hurry to ensure his spot there.

After a half-hour of searching, they found a Duel Platform, although it was in use at the moment. One of the duelists was sweating profusely, staring down a saurian monster with flames blazing at several points. The other raised her arm, pointing at her opponent.

"Volcanic Hammerer, attack his monster and end the game!"

The losing duelist glumly handed over his Star Chips, which the girl accepted. As soon as the other kid left, Yugi stepped forward.

"I challenge you for a spot in the finals!"

The girl stared down at Yugi, and then shrugged.

"I can't guarantee a spot, but I do have enough Star Chips to make it worth your while. How many do you need, kid?"

"I need three, and I see that you need the same amount. What do you say?"

"I say all or nothing. Winner walks away with fourteen Star Chips, loser takes the boat ride back home."

"Agreed. Now, let's do this!"

Both players placed their decks on their respective sides of the Duel Platform and drew their opening hands. The girl decided to go first.

"Now you'll see why they call me Blaise. I summon Royal Firestorm Guards in Attack Mode, and end my turn."

"Well, I'm not impressed yet. I summon Curse of Dragon. Now, attack Royal Firestorm Guards!"

Yugi's worm-like dragon swooped down, blasting fire onto Blaise's reptilian monster, destroying it. (Blaise: 1700; Yugi: 2000) Blaise drew her card and played her Fox Fire monster in Defense Mode. Yugi knew exactly what _that_ card did. As long as it was face-up, it re-summoned itself after being destroyed. Definitely a pain in the rear.

"I attack your Fox Fire with my Curse of Dragon!"

Blaise's monster vanished, and then reappeared on her side of the field. She drew her card and grinned.

"I summon my Gaia Soul the Combustible Collective, and equip it with my Salamandra. Then, I sacrifice my Fox Fire to increase its attack by another 1000 points. Now, Gaia Soul, attack Curse of Dragon!"

Blaise's monster, which looked like a brain with an eye in the center, exploded, destroying his Curse of Dragon in the process. (Blaise: 1700; Yugi: 300) After the explosion cleared up, Yugi saw that Blaise's Fox Fire had come back, just as he'd thought it would. Drawing, he realized that he had a card that would help him win the game.

"I play my Monster Reborn card!"

"Big deal. None of your monsters can do any damage to me while I control Fox Fire."

"No, but one of yours can. Your Gaia Soul deals damage to you even if it destroys a Defense Mode monster, and your Fox Fire doesn't have a very high defense. Now, I summon your Combustible Collective to my side of the field, and order it to attack your Fox Fire!"

Gaia Soul blew up again, destroying Fox Fire and ending the game. (Blaise: 0; Yugi: 300) Blaise nodded to herself, and then handed over her Star Chips. Shaking Yugi's hand, she turned and walked off, leaving Yugi with the keys to Pegasus' castle.


	6. Chapter 6

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own most of the characters in this project.

Disclaimer: No slash, no hentai. It's a project involving dueling. If you don't like it, that's entirely your problem. I just don't see the appeal in having Kaiba nail Yugi, or whatever the fad is right now.

________________________________________________________________________

**Chapter 6**

Yugi looked up at the castle. He'd spent the better part of two days wandering Pegasus' private island, dueling other players invited into the Duelist Kingdom Tournament, trying to get the ten Star Chips needed to get into the castle, where the tournament finals would be held. He looked over at his friend, Tea. She'd snuck onto the island to act as moral support, and had actually won him some of his Star Chips, helping him get to the finals. They nodded to each other, and walked up to the entryway. The guard looked the two of them up and down.

"She can't come."

"What? No, she's my friend, and-"

"No Star Chips, no entry. I don't make the rules."

"Oh, don't be such a party-pooper, Croquet! Let the girl in too. I've been dying to meet her."

Yugi and Tea glanced up to the top of the doorway, where a small camera sat next to an equally unobtrusive speaker. Apparently, Pegasus had been watching the whole time. Croquet got a look on his face, one that said he didn't appreciate his boss making him look foolish in front of strangers. He opened the door and stepped aside, glaring at Tea as she walked through.

The inside of the castle was bright and cheerful. Colorful tapestries hung from the walls, flanked by suits of armor. A crystal chandelier hung from the archway they approached. Beyond was a large room, far too big for the just seven people inside.

Yugi recognized Bandit Keith and Vellian Crowler from Pegasus' charity tournament, held only a few weeks before Duelist Kingdom. Kaiba, as expected, was there, talking with Yugi and Tea's friend Nikita. Atticus Rhodes, a well-respected duelist from England, was chatting with a person that Yugi couldn't identify for a second. When realization set in, he was shocked to see that it was Joey Wheeler; how Joey had gotten to the island in the first place was beyond him. And then Yugi saw the final member.

He knew immediately who it was. The figure was wearing the same robe with the crimson eye on the front, but his hood was down. With his high, flaring cheekbones, slicked-back black hair, pointed chin and pale skin, he looked like a vampire count. His dark eyes swam languidly over the others, taking in every detail while offering no information on their owner. Frankly, he was a little creepy. As soon as his eyes fell upon Yugi, he lowered his head and looked away, afraid to be drawn into the mystery man's world. Fortunately, the man, as well as everyone else in the room, was distracted by the appearance of another person, a man who could only be Pegasus J. Crawford, head of Industrial Illusions, creator of Duel Monsters and organizer of the Duelist Kingdom Tournament.

"Well, well, the gang's all here, aren't they? I am terribly sorry for keeping you waiting, but we had to make sure we had all eight of you. Now-"

"I just counted. Not including you, there are nine of us here. What gives?"

Pegasus blinked as though confused, and then began counting heads. Yugi was a little confused; he knew full well that Pegasus had invited Tea in when they had gotten there, but he was now acting as though that little episode had never happened. Pegasus stopped counting and quickly recovered himself.

"So there are. Of course, now I remember! This delightful young creature over there," and with this, he pointed at Tea, "has proven herself very interesting over the course of the day, and I was planning on a little exhibition match with her tonight, before pairings for the tournament are drawn. So, if you will all follow me . . . "

Pegasus turned and gestured through the doorway he had entered from, and the small group of duelists followed. Most had varying levels of confusion written over their faces. Kaiba and the mystery duelist both looked a little fed up at Pegasus' antics, while Atticus looked bored. Yugi looked at Tea. She looked a little nervous; she'd admitted on more than one occasion that her deck was for casual play, and the prospect of playing against the creator of Duel Monsters, even for a "friendly" exhibition, must have been terrifying.

The nine found themselves on the upper level of the overly-large room where Pegasus' previous charity tournament had been held. The Duel Platform was still standing there, waiting for Pegasus and Tea. Tea swallowed hard, and then walked down a set of stairs that led to one of the platforms. One of Pegasus' staff approached her, took her deck, and brought it around to Pegasus while another staff member did the same with his deck. Both of them cut the deck presented them, after which the staff members returned them to their rightful owners. Both of them drew their opening hands. Pegasus made another gesture.

"Ladies first, my dear. It's only proper."

Tea drew her card for the turn and took a good long look at her hand. No one had ever seen Pegasus duel before, as far as she knew. This, coupled with the fact that Pegasus had access to, theoretically, every Duel Monsters card ever printed, including some that might not have been released to the public, meant that she had no idea what he was going to play. _Relax_, she thought, _it's not like this really matters. Besides, it might help Yugi get ready for when he duels_. There was no thought of _if_ Yugi would duel Pegasus, only _when_. She decided to start off on the defensive. Looking at her hand, she spotted the one card she'd won from Rex that she'd kept. _Might as well throw that up as a roadblock_.

"I summon Marie the Fallen One in Defense Mode and throw one card face-down!"

Pegasus was a little stunned when he saw the black-skinned angel appear in front of Tea, even though he didn't show it. Tea had just played an Invitational card as her first monster. Looking up, he tried to read the other duelists. Those who knew it was an Invitational card (Kaiba, Crowler and the robed duelist) looked a little impressed. Atticus was leaning forward, nostrils flared; obviously, he knew more than he was letting on. Filing those little pieces of information away for later, he put on a grin. _This one's going to be trouble_.

"I summon my Parrot Dragon, and order it to attack your Fallen One!"

A feathery green dragon with a large beak rose out of the ground in front of him and shot forward, biting Tea's monster. It shook its head until the angel shattered. Pegasus gestured for Tea to make her move, and then watched as her Life Points increased. (Tea: 2200; Pegasus: 2000) All of a sudden, he remembered what the card did. _Oopsie_. Tea looked just as stunned as he did; obviously, she'd had no idea Marie the Fallen One let you gain Life Points as long as it was in the Graveyard. Tea looked through her hand and grabbed a card.

"I summon The Agent of Judgment – Saturn, and order it to attack your Parrot Dragon!"

A blue woman with wings of the same color launched a bolt of energy at Pegasus' dragon, which slowly dissolved under the assault. (Tea: 2200; Pegasus: 1600) Pegasus looked through his hand and decided that now would be as good a time as any to unveil one of his many weapons.

"I play my spell, Toon World! Now they're coming crazy and kooky, so heads up!"

A large book appeared on Pegasus' side of the field. It opened, the pages flipping rapidly until it stopped on a page that quickly popped outwards, sprouting a small city over the opened pages. Everyone in the upper level showed some kind of surprise; like most of the other power cards in Pegasus' deck, Toon World had not been released to the public. Not a single duelist present, with the exception of Pegasus himself, had any idea what the card did. Looking through the cards in his hand, Pegasus chose which of his Toon monsters he would play first.

"Now, for the first act, I call out my Toon Summoned Skull from his place in the book. Toon Summoned Skull, blast that angel to dust!"

A green, goofy-looking version of Yugi's potent fiend shot out of the book, rebounded from the ceiling, and shot a lightning bolt at Tea's monster, disintegrating it. (Tea: 2100; Pegasus: 1600) Pegasus laid a card from his hand face-down and gestured for Tea to take her turn.

"First, I gain Life Points from Marie the Fallen One. Then, I summon . . . wait, where'd your monster go?"

"Oh, he went back to his spot in the funny pages until I need him again. Go on, finish your turn."

Tea shook her head. _They can hide? How am I supposed to beat them if they're only on the field when he needs them to attack?_ Tea could feel the answer on the edges of her mind, but couldn't quite bring it forward. Instead, she decided to summon something stronger than Pegasus' cartoon demon, something it couldn't simply blast into oblivion. Her Guardian Angel Joan would do nicely.

"I summon-"

"Before you do that, I activate my Prophecy card. If I guess whether your monster's attack strength is less than or higher than 2000, I add that card to my hand, and I say . . . higher!"

Tea swallowed and showed him her monster. Pegasus chuckled as she handed it over to him.

"Sorry darling, but you're just not with it tonight. Toon Summoned Skull, finish this!"

Pegasus' monster exited the book again and blasted Tea with a direct attack, finishing the game. (Tea: 0; Pegasus: 1600) Tea was stunned, as were the finalists. In less than a minute, Pegasus had gone from eccentric, not-quite-with-it game designer to master duelist as though he'd flipped a switch. After stepping down from his platform, he immediately became the gracious, if slightly loopy, host.

"Well, that was fun. Who's up for dinner?"

The nine non-residents followed Pegasus slowly out of the dueling arena, talking amongst themselves about the duel they'd just seen. The common consensus was that Pegasus wasn't being very fair; after all, how were you supposed to fight cards you'd never even heard of before now? Yugi caught up to Tea, noticing that she was still a little stunned from how quickly her game had turned around.

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah, it's just . . . I don't know, I thought I had it figured out how to beat those creepy cartoon monsters of his, but my brain just wouldn't give me the information. I don't know how any of you are going to beat him."

Yugi decided that this was a conversation he and Tea shouldn't have been having, and turned his attention to the room they had just entered. It wasn't nearly as big as the other rooms he'd seen in the castle, but it was still more than large enough to accommodate all of the visiting duelists. In the center was a mammoth table with seats for ten; apparently, Pegasus had been planning for there to be an extra player. The table was loaded with food of all kinds, all still hot. Everyone sat down and started digging in as though they hadn't eaten for days, which several of them probably hadn't, expecting to have already gotten to the castle before the end of the first day. Pegasus had taken the seat at the end of the table, and was talking with Kaiba and Crowler. Yugi was in the middle of a piece of steak when Atticus, who was sitting next to him, started a conversation.

"Hi. Atticus Rhodes, although you've probably heard of me."

"I have. What's up?"

"I was wondering . . . how did your little friend there end up with that card of hers? You know, the black angel in the pink nightie?"

"She won it from this pair of duelists that wanted to take my deck. I didn't get the name of the one, but she described one of them, a woman with weird hair. I think she called her Strings."

"Strings, huh? That's an odd name. Bet she plays some kind of mind control deck, right?"

"Tea didn't play against her. She had some pledge for her organization play her. She just lent him some cards for a wager. Tea tried giving me all of them, but I had to force her to keep that one."

"Interesting. How do you feel about this crap we have to deal with if we get to Pegasus? I mean, it's not really all that fair, what with him having cards that no one's ever seen before. Plus, he's had access to all our matches, and that means-"

"What do you mean, access to our matches?"

"How do you think he knew about your friend there? He's been watching all the duels we were in. He'll probably know more about our decks than we do. Let's face it; he could probably beat any or all of us without trying."

Yugi stared at Atticus for a second, then shook his head and returned to his dinner. He knew he could figure out a way to beat Pegasus' deck, if the situation came up; he just needed some time to think about it.

_____________________________________________________________

Two hours later, most of the participants were in their rooms, and Tea was walking back to the room Pegasus had put her in. She was coming back from the shower facilities; after going almost four days without, she would never take personal hygiene for granted again. While she was walking down the halls, she heard someone talking. Judging by the change in volume, he (the voice sounded nothing like Nikita, which eliminated the only other female in the castle from her possible matches) was coming closer. Looking around franticly for a hiding place, she ducked behind a suit or armor in a nearby alcove.

"Well, what a surprise. Maybe I don't sound pleased because I'M NOT HAPPY! You lost – oh, right. He didn't have anything to wager. Of course he had cards to wager! He just didn't want to risk one of _his_ cards for that battle. Alister wouldn't have fallen for that. Neither would Odion. I'm beginning to suspect that bringing you onto our level was a bad idea. Oh, I'm going a little overboard, am I? Did you forget what I had to do to get that card in the first place? I think you have. Once this is done, I want to see you, personally."

Tea winced as the person's cell phone went sailing past her and down the hall, breaking as it landed. She waited for a while, until she was sure that whoever it was had left. Slipping out of the alcove, she walked off to her room, knowing that she wouldn't be able to get more than a little sleep tonight, puzzling over this mystery.

_____________________________________________________________

When Yugi went down to get some breakfast, he noticed a pile of Duel Monsters packs sitting at each seat. Surprisingly, they were all still at their seats, despite the fact that most of the finalists were there. The only person that had opened any yet was Atticus, who had separated the cards into two different piles. Crowler took a glance at them and then threw his pile into the center of the table, clearly indicating that anyone could take them. Kaiba and Bandit did the same. Joey and Nikita were opening theirs; Joey was slipping his cards into an unused deck box, while Nikita was carefully reading each card, pulling a few out for possible usage.

Yugi was rudely bumped through the doorway. He turned around, ready to make a comment about manners when he saw it to be the mystery duelist in the robe. Even without his hood up, he scared Yugi in ways he couldn't quite understand. The man took one look at the packs at his seat and then handed them over to Atticus without a word. Yugi walked over to his seat and began opening his packs. Nothing really jumped out, so he slid them into his pocket. Grabbing his last pack, he slit the plastic and slid the cards out. He shifted through them, not noticing the card he'd passed at first. It suddenly dawned on him, and he flipped back to the card.

He'd seen the card before; the person that had played it was in the room. It was almost impossible to imagine owning the card, seeing as it was so rare. Most people had just assumed Pegasus had kept the last copy of it just so he could have a copy. Apparently not. He stood up and left the room; for all he knew, someone else would just try and take the card; he wasn't all that big or tough, so it would be easy for someone like Joey to beat him up over it. There was only one person he could tell about it, and she wasn't there.

When he got to the room Tea was in, he knocked, waited about a minute, and then knocked again. A groaning, sleep-laden voice told him to come in. Yugi opened the door to find Tea sprawled across the bed, still in the clothes she'd been wearing the night before; apparently, she'd neglected to bring a change of clothes when she'd snuck on the boat. She looked up at him, and then groaned and laid her head back down.

"Is this important, or can I go back to bed?"

Yugi simply laid the card in front of her. She fumbled for it, eventually getting a grasp on the edges to pick it up. Once she got a look at it, she shot awake.

"How did you get this?"

"Someone left a bunch of packs for each of the finalists. That was in one of them."

Tea propped herself up on her arm, running her hands over the card to check if it was a counterfeit; it wasn't unknown for some unscrupulous workers slipping fake versions of expensive cards into packs so they could take the real cards for themselves. Satisfied that it was real, she handed the card back to Yugi.

"Kaiba's going to freak if he sees that. I mean, his signature monster isn't unique all of a sudden. Are you going to use it?"

"Yeah, I think I am, but not out of spite for Kaiba. I honestly think I got this card for a reason."

Yugi slipped his new Blue-Eyes White Dragon into his deck. Turning to leave, he almost closed the door before Tea got her hand in to stop him from doing so.

"I thought you were tired."

"Not anymore. I just hope I can get some breakfast before you guys start playing. I'm starving."

_____________________________________________________________

"Well, well, it seems everyone made it here on time. Now, I have one last bit of information to pass along before we can get underway."

Nikita rolled her eyes as Pegasus yapped away. She hadn't even known the man a full day and she already thought he was nothing but a dancing monkey in a suit. _Be loopy, or be serious. Don't switch between them. It's no wonder he lives here; no one else can stand him_. This was probably some other stupid thing about how to conduct yourself if you lost or some other nonsense like that. Might as well act interested though; she didn't want to get thrown out for bad manners.

"Now, as you know, the top prize for the last player standing is three million dollars in whatever form you like. However, the winner may choose to forfeit that money for a chance to duel me. There is no penalty for losing that match, aside from the loss of the money. If you win, however, I will grant you any one favor you like from me."

All eight finalists showed some form of new interest, ranging from Kaiba's raised eyebrow to Atticus' leaning forward and licking his lips. This was big, and everyone immediately began thinking of what to ask for.

"And let me tell you, I do mean _anything_. Give you my controlling majority in Industrial Industries, this castle, even my deck itself, all up for grabs if you can beat me. Good luck. You'll need it."

Nikita headed for one of the stairs leading down to the arena. She was playing Joey, who had (amazingly, she thought) had managed to dodge guards for two days before beating enough duelists to acquire the ten Star Chips needed for entry to the finals. Still, he couldn't possibly be _that_ lucky. Or maybe he was, but his luck had run out. Either way, she didn't see any problems in her ascension to the finals. After she had shuffled her deck and cut Joey's, she decided that she would go second. Joey drew his card to take his turn.

"I summon my Tiger Axe in Attack Mode. Bring it on!"

Nikita had to stop herself from busting out laughing. _This_ was his first play? He had to be dreaming to think he could win this one. Grinning, she drew her card.

"Now, let's show you how a real duelist starts a game. Twin-Headed Fire Dragon, Dual Nova! Blast his monster to bits!"

Joey's felinoid monster braced itself but was washed away under the dragon's literal firepower. (Joey: 1100; Nikita: 2000) Joey blinked but quickly recovered. At least, he appeared to; inside, he was a little worried. _She's not holding back. This could get bad, unless I cut loose too. But if I do that and my draws don't keep up . . ._ Joey grabbed his Battle Warrior and threw it in Defense Mode. Nikita drew and had her dragon attack again, destroying Joey's warrior.

"Come on, put up a fight or surrender. Honestly, I'm amazed you got here in the first place, playing like that."

Joey was beginning to get mad. Drawing, he found a combo that could beat her dragon.

"I summon my Flame Swordsman, and equip him with the Salamandra spell card! And now that he's stronger than your dragon, he's gonna fry you! Flame Swordsman, attack!"

"No dice, kid. My dragon's made of fire and magma. Your fire attack does nothing to him. Twin-Headed Fire Dragon, destroy him!"

Nikita's dragon latched onto Joey's swordsman with both heads, tearing him in half. (Joey: 700; Nikita: 2000) She grinned wickedly across the field at Joey.

"Looks like the Cinderella story's over. I knew you wouldn't be able to take the heat forever. Say goodbye, and get it over with quickly."

Joey drew. He had a slight plan, but it would require Nikita playing recklessly for her next turn. If she didn't, he'd lose.

"I play my Baby Dragon in Defense Mode, and play a card face-down. Next, I play Monster Reborn, bringing back my Tiger Axe. Your turn."

Nikita practically cackled when she saw Joey's field. Drawing, she set her hand aside.

"I don't even need any of the cards in my hand to beat you. Twin-Headed Fire Dragon, attack Tiger Axe again!"

"I trigger my Block Attack card, switching my Tiger Axe to Defense Mode. Now, your attack does no damage, even if it destroys my monster."

"So you live for one more turn. It doesn't matter, because you rely on nothing but luck. I bet you're waiting for one card, but it doesn't matter. Go ahead, draw and be done with it."

Joey said a little prayer in his head. _Please, just let me draw it. I need to win this, just to prove I'm not an amateur with a lot of luck._ He suddenly realized that he wouldn't prove anything except that he was lucky if he drew Tri-Horned Dragon. He had to figure out how to win with the card in his hand. First, though, he had to draw. Taking the card off the top of his deck, he set it to the side without looking at it. Looking at his hand, he tried to remember the effect of the monster he was holding. It was essentially random, but if he got it right, he might just be able to pull it off.

"I switch my Baby Dragon to Attack Mode, and summon my Time Wizard! Now, my Time Wizard activates his Time Roulette power, sending the game forward in time!"

"That's only if you get really lucky and stop his wand in the right place. And if you don't, then you're dead. Really want to risk the game on a spin of the wheel?"

"Yeah, I do. If I have to choose, I'd rather be lucky than good. Now, stop!"

The needle on the Time Wizard's staff began to slow down. Joey was hoping for it to stop pointing to one of the two castles; if it stopped on one of the four skulls, the effect would backlash and take him out. It spun slower and slower, until it stopped . . . on a castle. Joey pumped his fist into the air as the field warped around his and Nikita's monsters. When it cleared, Nikita's dragon was a cool lump of rock (Attack 0), and Joey's Baby Dragon had gotten large and old.

"My Thousand Dragon fights on, which is more than I can say for your monster. Thousand Dragon, attack Twin-Headed Fire Dragon!"

The ancient dragon snorted a blast of fire, melting Nikita's dragon into slag. (Joey: 700; Nikita: 0) Nikita stormed off, furious that she lost. Joey picked up his deck and almost walked off without the card he'd set aside. Remembering, he picked it up and turned it over. It was the card he'd been asking for, the strongest monster in his deck. He slid his Tri-Horned Dragon back into his deck, smiling to himself. _I won. I WON! Even without my dragon, I beat her. I just might win this thing._

_____________________________________________________________

Nikita was sitting in a chair, trying to get her head around the fact that she had lost. It just didn't make sense. She'd been ready for Joey's deck, ready for his seat-of-your-pants playstyle. And he'd still managed to beat her. She felt a hand on her shoulder and jerked away.

"Nikita? Are you okay?"

"Just great. I only just got beaten by a rank amateur in what's probably going to be the highlight of my dueling career, but no, I'm fine."

Tea sat down next to Nikita, wrapping her arm around the other girl's shoulder. Nikita tried to wriggle out of it, but only half-heartedly. Tea gave her a squeeze and tried talking Nikita down.

"Look, you've got to give up this thing with Joey. I mean, can you even remember what got you two going at it in the first place?"

"That's not the point! I had a shot, and he just took it away from me," she snapped her fingers, "like that."

"To be fair, you were kind of asking for it. You only ever played the one card, and your attitude was a little . . . off. Besides, you did a good job up to that point. Don't let this ruin your dreams. Now, come on. Kaiba's about to play that weird guy in the robe."

Tea stood up and started walking off towards the balcony from which she and the other tournament participants watched the current match. Nikita hunched her head down for a second, and then got up to watch.

_____________________________________________________________

Kaiba looked through his opening hand and took a look at the duelist standing across from him. He looked indifferent to the situation, as though dueling the current world champion was just the same as getting up in the morning. Not a hint of emotion; if Kaiba hadn't known otherwise, he would have thought the man was a statue, or a zombie. Pegasus nodded, and Kaiba drew his card.

"I summon my Battle Ox in Attack Mode, and play one card face-down. Now . . . I'm sorry, but I don't know your name. How am I supposed to address you?"

"You can simply call me Bonz. Everyone that knows me does. Is it my turn?"

Kaiba nodded, and Bonz drew his card.

"I play one card face-down, summon my Dragon Zombie, and equip him with the Violet Crystal spell card, increasing his power by 300! Now, Dragon Zombie, attack Battle Ox!"

A putrescent, rotting dragon surged forward, clamping down on Kaiba's minotaur with crystalline teeth. (Kaiba: 1800; Bonz: 2000) Kaiba had thought about using his face-down card, but decided to save it for another monster. He drew, and found himself staring at one of his better defensive monsters. He didn't think Bonz would know its effect; it was pretty rare, and most people had never heard of it.

"I summon my Wall of Illusions in Defense Mode. Your turn."

Bonz was staring into the face of a purple-skinned head with long red hair. The head was in the center of a three-part screen made up of flesh and bone. It looked creepy, and probably had some kind of devastating effect.

"I summon my Lich Lord, King of the Underworld in Attack Mode, and order it to obliterate your monster!"

A zombie in red robes rose out of the ground, pointing at Kaiba's illusory monster with an arm that was lacking a hand. A black vortex opened over the field, drawing both monsters into it. Kaiba was stunned as his card slid away into the graveyard.

"How . . . how did you do that?"

"My Lich Lord can sacrifice himself to remove your monster from the game(_AN: I know it doesn't do that. I needed Bonz to get rid of it without losing his Dragon Zombie or just resorting to another kill spell_), which leaves you vulnerable to an attack from my Dragon Zombie. Finish this!"

Bonz' rotting dragon surged forward, rushing for Kaiba. Before it could reach him, chains tore out of the ground, binding the zombie to the ground. Bonz was astonished, but got over it quickly.

"A defensive trap. Interesting. You never struck me as the defensive type."

"My Shadow Spell does more that just defend. It robs your dragon of 700 Attack Points, leaving it vulnerable to an attack from my Swordstalker!"

Kaiba's purple warrior charged forward, slashing Bonz' zombie in half. (Kaiba: 1800; Bonz: 1200) Bonz grinned; fighting Kaiba was a challenge, and he alone knew that there had been far too few challenges in his life recently. He drew and decided to have his Dragon Zombie perform an encore.

"I play my Book of Life, removing your Battle Ox from play and reviving my Dragon Zombie! Next, I activate my face-down Polymerization card, fusing my Dragon Zombie with The Snake Hair from my hand to create my Great Mammoth of Goldfine! Now, attack his Swordstalker!"

A giant elephant skeleton composed of golden bones gored Kaiba's warrior, driving it into the ground before it dissolved. (Kaiba: 1600; Bonz: 1200) Kaiba didn't have anything in his hand that could take Bonz' Mammoth, but he did have another defensive monster, and this one could more than take the punishment.

"I summon my diamond dragon, Hyozanryu, in Defense Mode, and play one card face-down. Your turn."

Bonz looked through his hand, and decided that it was time to finish this duel. He grabbed a card in his hand and slapped it down.

"I play Offerings to the Doomed, giving up my next Draw Phase in order to destroy your dragon. Now, Great Mammoth of Goldfine, wipe him off the map!"

"Wrong again. I trigger Negate Attack, canceling out your monster's attack and ending your Battle Phase. Are you done?"

Bonz nodded, realizing that, if Kaiba played a monster that could overpower his Mammoth, he was done in more ways than one; he had no monsters in his hand, and his spell had negated his next draw. His loss was confirmed when Kaiba played his next card.

"I summon my Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and order it to attack your Mammoth!"

Bonz revealed his hand to Kaiba while placing his left hand on top of his deck. (Kaiba: 1600; Bonz: 400) Kaiba walked over to Bonz and extended his hand. Bonz took it and shook it, matching Kaiba's grip with his own. Both players knew that Kaiba's defensive strategies had been given more of a workout here than they had in almost all of his previous games. They released each other's hands, and Bonz turned to walk away. No one noticed the hand sign he made to Pegasus, nor did they see the sign Pegasus made in return. The two of them would talk after the tournament was over, and no one else had to be any the wiser; their discussion was not meant for their ears.

_____________________________________________________________

Atticus grinned at his opponent, the American Bandit Keith. Keith was grinning too, but his looked a tad bit feral. Atticus didn't care; as far as he was concerned, Bandit was just one speed bump between him and Pegasus' one-of-a-kind deck. All he had to do was beat Bandit, and he would be one step closer to possessing all of those unique cards. His mouth was practically watering. He forced himself to focus on the task at hand. He nodded to Bandit, indicating that he would defer his choice of whether or not to go first. Bandit's grin widened as he drew his card.

"All right, let's do this. I summon my Launcher Spider in Attack Mode and play one card face-down. Your turn!"

"Fine. I summon my Red-Eyes Black Dragon in Attack Mode, and order it to attack your Launcher Spider!"

The massive metal arachnid on Bandit's side of the field withstood the barrage thrown upon it, returning fire with the missile launchers on its back. Atticus' dragon was devastated by the attack, crashing to the ground before dissolving to bits. (Bandit: 2000; Atticus: 1900) When the smoke cleared, Atticus saw a decent-sized building sitting behind Bandit's monster.

"How . . . why didn't your spider die?"

"My Machine Conversion Factory boosts his attack, and the attack of all my other mechanical monsters, by 300 points. Now, I summon my Machine King in Attack Mode! And not only does he gain the boost for my factory card, but he increases his attack by another 100 points for each Machine-Type monster on the field! I'll let you sweat it out for this turn, but next turn, I'm coming in all out!"

Atticus looked at his hand. He didn't have much. He had another Red-Eyes, an evolved form of the Red-Eyes, and a few traps. He tried to think of how he could play this out. He wanted to play his evolved Red-Eyes card, but if Bandit had a card that could negate its effect, it would be a sitting duck. He glanced through his trap cards again. One stood out among the rest. If he played his evolved dragon, he wouldn't want to play the trap. But with his regular Red-Eyes . . .

"I summon another Red-Eyes Black Dragon in Attack Mode, and play a card face-down. Take your turn!"

"Fine by me if you want to die. Machine King, attack his dragon!"

Bandit's monster, which looked a lot like Optimus Prime, fired its fist off its arm, sending it straight at the Red-Eyes. Atticus laughed and reached for his face-down card.

"I trigger my Reverse Trap! Now, instead of your monster getting a boost for your factory and machine monsters, it gets weakened by the same amount! Red-Eyes, send his king to the scrap heap!"

The black dragon shot a ball of flame at Bandit's Machine King, blowing it apart. (Bandit: 1300; Atticus: 1900) Bandit relaxed when his Launcher Spider's attack reset itself at the end of Atticus' turn; if the effect of the trap had been permanent, he would have been in a lot of trouble. _Of course, if he's playing only Red-Eyes and its support cards, there might still be some trouble._ He gestured to Atticus to take his turn. Atticus got an evil grin on his face when he drew his card.

"I activate my De-Spell spell card. This lets me destroy a spell card on the field. I think I'll take out your factory. Then, I sacrifice my Red-Eyes Black Dragon to summon a larger beast. Come forth, Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon!"

Shadows rose out of the field, surrounding Atticus' dragon. The dark shape began to grow and shift, its form remaining somewhat similar. When the shadows cleared off, a massive black dragon hovered over the field. Red crystals were scattered over its body, with tracers of the same color running up the wings and down the legs. Its arms were gone, and its legs were tipped with massive claws. Atticus laughed when he saw it compared to Bandit's spider.

"My new dragon has a cute little effect. For each Dragon-Type monster in my graveyard, it gains 300 attack. And with two dead dragons, it has an attack of 3000. Darkness Dragon, wipe his monster off the map!"

This time, Bandit's spider was consumed by dark crimson flames. (Bandit: 500; Atticus: 1900) _Now_ it was looking bad. Bandit had nothing in his hand that could take Atticus' dragon head-on. However, if he got really lucky with a coin . . .

"I summon my Barrel Dragon in Attack Mode and activate its effect. By giving up its attack for this turn, I can flip a coin 3 times. If I get Heads two or more times, I can automatically destroy one of your monsters. How do you like that?"

It was clear from the look on Atticus' face that he did not like that. One of Pegasus' suits came out with a coin, signaling both players to come to the center of the duel field to verify the results. The first flip came up heads, the second tails. The game rode on the third flip. The coin rose into the air, turning slowly as it came down. Pegasus' man caught it and revealed it, heads up. Bandit pumped his fist as his mechanical dragon blasted Atticus' massive one out of the sky. Atticus frowned, but said nothing. Once the two of them returned to their platforms, Atticus drew his card.

"I summon my Red-Eyes Wyvern in Defense mode. Your turn."

"I play my Stop Defense card, switching your Wyvern into Attack Mode. Now, I play my Graceful Charity spell card, which lets me draw 3 cards, as long as I discard 2 cards after the draw."

Bandit drew his cards and whistled.

"Now, I play two copies of my 7 Completed card. These cards allow me to increase my monster's attack of defense by 700 points for each card. I choose attack for both, and order my Barrel Dragon to destroy both your Wyvern and your Life Points. Go, Twin Barrel Blast!"

Bandit's mechanical dragon leveled all three barrels it possessed at Atticus' Red-Eyes Wyvern, pulverizing it with one shot. (Bandit: 500; Atticus: 0) Atticus turned and walked off the platform. Instead of heading back to the upper level, he walked out the door, headed for his private boat. There would be someone waiting for him there. Someone with whom he wanted to have a very long, very private chat.

_____________________________________________________________

Yugi watched as Atticus walked off. His departure didn't match up with the impression he'd gotten the night before. Then, he'd seemed friendly, but now, he just seemed pissy and bad-mannered. The fact that he wasn't even going to stay and watch the rest of the tournament bugged Yugi a little, but he cast those thoughts aside when he realized that he was up to duel.

Yugi remembered a little bit of Crowler's deck from the charity tournaments. He played the Ancient Gear monsters, powerful machines that could not be Special Summoned. If he could get Crowler's powerful monsters into his graveyard quickly, the game would be that much easier. Unfortunately, Crowler probably had a lot of cards that could recover them; he wasn't called the Duel Professor for nothing. When both players had cut the other's deck, Yugi indicated that Crowler should go first. Crowler did not disagree.

"I summon my Ancient Gear Soldier in Attack Mode. Your turn."

Yugi looked at his hand, and then looked at Crowler's clockwork warrior. He had several useful cards, as well as a monster that could mop the floor with Crowler's monster. He decided to take that chance.

"I summon my Celtic Guardian in Attack Mode and play two face-down cards. Celtic Guardian, attack Ancient Gear Soldier!"

Yugi's elven monster slashed its sword across Crowler's monster's chest, ripping out its gears and causing it to collapse. (Yugi: 2000; Crowler: 1900) Crowler grinned and drew his card.

"Now that you've taken the bait, it's time to reel you in. Ancient Gear Beast, attack Celtic Guardian!"

A mechanical wolf with massive fangs bounded across the field, aiming for the Celtic Guardian's throat. Yugi grinned.

"I trigger my Spellbinding Circle, trapping your monster and robbing it of its attack!"

Yugi flipped the card over, but nothing happened. Crowler's Beast grabbed Celtic Guardian in its jaws and gave it a good shake. (Yugi: 1400; Crowler: 1900) Yugi was stunned; his trap should have stopped Crowler's monster dead in its tracks. Crowler thought this was a little funny.

"Surely you knew that my Ancient Gear monsters prevent you from activating cards during the Battle Phase, right? Because if you didn't, then you might be foolish enough to try it. Sorry kid, but you'll have to do better than that to beat me."

Yugi's heart sank. Thanks to Crowler's monsters, Yugi had two dead cards in his back row; just going by the wording, his cards stayed where they were instead of going to the graveyard. Drawing, he saw that his position had been damaged a little; without his traps, he was missing a decent-sized portion of his deck.

"I summon my Gaia the Fierce Knight in Attack Mode, and order it to attack Ancient Gear Beast. Go, Fierce Knight!"

Yugi's brightly colored knight rode forward on its armored horse, jabbing Crowler's monster with a pair of lances. (Yugi: 1400; Crowler: 1600) Crowler grinned.

"So, you just can't get the right monsters going for you, can you? Because you'll need to do a lot better to beat my ultimate monster. Ancient Gear Golem, smash his Knight!"

This monster looked a lot like Crowler's Soldier, except it had no weapon. It was also easily ten times bigger than the Soldier, towering over Gaia. It pulled its arm back, smashing Gaia into the ground with its fist. (Yugi: 700; Crowler: 1600) Yugi looked through his hand. He remembered the other effect Ancient Gear Golem possessed. It trampled over any monster in Defense Mode, dealing its leftover attack as damage to the opponent. Desperately, he tried to find something that would help. The only thing he could find was a stalling tactic, but he had to take it.

"I summon my Mystical Elf in Defense Mode, and play my spell Magical Hats. Now, my elf in hidden in one of the four hats sitting in front of me. Care to play a guessing game?"

Crowler was intrigued. Up on the second level, Tea was a little worried. She looked over at Kaiba, who was studying the battle.

"Isn't this a little risky? I mean, if Crowler gets lucky, he'll wipe Yugi out without breaking a sweat! How's Yugi supposed to get out of this?"

"He's waiting for something, and he's done the only thing he can. But, like you said, he's done if Crowler makes a lucky guess. Better hope he can draw his card quickly, or he might be sitting in the backseat for the rest of the tournament."

Yugi breathed easily when Crowler blasted the first of the empty hats. He drew. Nothing. He gestured for Crowler to take his turn. Crowler seemed a little insulted.

"Oh come on now. Surely you can put up a little more action than this. Ancient Gear Golem, attack the hat in the center!"

Another empty hat, and suddenly Crowler had a 50-50 chance of eliminating Yugi on his next turn. Yugi had to draw a card that could match Crowler's Golem, or he would be watching the rest of the tournament instead of participating. He placed his hand on his deck and felt a little pulse. It was as if the card was saying, "I'm the card you need. Let's go." He drew, knowing almost before he drew it what it was. He loked at it and grinned.

"I switch my Mystical Elf into Attack Mode, dispelling the Magical Hats effect. Next, I summon my Blue-Eyes White Dragon in Attack Mode!"

The wind went out of every person in the room. Yugi's dragon rose up from the ground, bellowing as it stared down Crowler's Golem. Crowler managed to get his voice back after a few seconds.

"Im-impossible! How could you have gotten that card? People have been searching for it for years. How did you come by it?"

"I pulled it out of a pack. Now, I equip my dragon with the Horn of the Unicorn spell card, granting him an attack boost! Finally, I activate the effect of my Mystical Elf, allowing her to grant her attack to another Light monster. Now, Blue-Eyes, attack Ancient Gear Golem with White Lightning!"

Yugi's dragon unleashed a stream of white energy from its mouth. The blast washed over Crowler's Golem. Small pieces flew off as the golem disintegrated from the assault. (Yugi: 700; Crowler: 100) Crowler knew he was beat, and decided to forfeit. As Yugi and Crowler left the arena, Pegasus stood up and clapped his hands.

"Well, that was an interesting first round. I say we break for a little lunch. I'll see you all in an hour!"

Pegasus vacated his seat at an abrupt rate. As most of the finalists headed for the dining area, Yugi noticed Bonz heading in the same direction Pegasus had taken. He decided to let if go; he was busy trying to fend off the questions from everyone, asking him how he had managed to pull the missing Blue-Eyes White Dragon, would he trade it, would he sell it, etc. He managed to push himself through the glut of duelists. He really was hungry, and wanted to get a good meal before the semifinals.


	7. Chapter 7

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own most of the characters in this project.

Disclaimer: No slash, no hentai. It's a project involving dueling. If you don't like it, that's entirely your problem. I just don't see the appeal in having Kaiba nail Yugi, or whatever the fad is right now.

* * *

**Chapter 7**

Pegasus watched the monitor intently, studying the four semifinalists' matches, both during the open part of the tournament and from this morning. With his Millennium Eye, he didn't need to do that; after all, why study when you can just read your opponent's mind like a book? Pegasus was trying not to depend on the Eye too much, and studying was the best way to do so. The other man in the room was not impressed.

"It's not going to work. You'll find yourself using the Eye after two turns, if the winner decides to challenge you."

Bonz was leaning against the wall, slowly taking in the room around him. Like the rest of the castle, it was well-appointed, full of expensive tapestries and paintings. It was brightly lit, almost _too_ brightly, at least for his tastes. But, Pegasus preferred the place to be lit up like a Christmas tree, and so brightly lit it was. Bonz tried not to focus on the decorations. He was here on a mission.

"We're extending an invitation to you. Our group wishes for you to be a member, but you must relinquish the Eye to someone who won't abuse it."

"Come now. Every time one of you little Illuminati errand boys comes here, you make the same offer, and I give you the same answer. Besides, it wouldn't be nearly as much fun without the Eye's powers."

"So, you think that it's fun to just violate other people's minds at the drop of a hat? Obviously you're not just acting the fool; you're truly insane."

"Go away, will you? The semifinals are about to start, and I can't be late. I'm the head of ceremonies."

"Fine. But we'll be back, and next time, don't expect our representative to take it so easy on you."

With that, Bonz abandoned his position on the wall, turned to the door and walked out. Pegasus sat for a second and then stopped the tape of Yugi's duel with Rose. He'd already seen it a few times, so he knew what Yugi was playing. Standing up, he exited through a different door, ready to see what else his possible opponents had in store for himself and each other.

* * *

Yugi sighed in relief when he saw that Kaiba and Joey would play the first match. He was still a little wiped out from his duel with Crowler, and would have found himself less than peak for a duel. He looked at the other finalists. Crowler wasn't there; he'd left after lunch, citing "personal affairs" as his reason for leaving. Neither was Bonz, although Yugi wasn't all that interested in what Bonz was doing. To be honest, Bonz creeped him out. Atticus had returned, apologizing for his rude behavior after his loss. Nikita was sitting next to Tea; only she and Yugi knew how hard it was for her to sit and watch someone else playing a game she thought she should be in. All in all, Yugi was glad for the company while he prepared for his game with Bandit Keith; he had struck up a conversation with Atticus, trying to get a feel for Bandit's playstyle from someone who had actually played against it.

"Well, as you saw, it was pretty aggressive, but in the end, his win came from a few lucky flips with his Barrel Dragon. If I were you, I'd just try to rush him before he can get too many of his powerful machines into play."

"But what happens if-"

"Hold that thought. They're starting."

Yugi turned his attention towards the Duel Platform, where Joey and Kaiba had taken their respective places on either side of the field. Everyone could see Joey's hands twitching a little, betraying a vast uneasiness. Obviously, Joey had not been prepared to face Kaiba, or at least, not this soon. He slowly reached out and cut Kaiba's deck when it was presented to him, and then took his back a little unsteadily. Drawing his cards, Joey was chosen to go first. Looking through his hand, he decided to start off strong.

"I start this duel with my Swamp Battleguard in Attack Mode! Top that, rich boy!"

Kaiba looked at his hand, made a slight shrug, and grabbed a card from his hand.

"I summon my Grappler in Defense Mode and play two cards face-down. Go."

Joey knew immediately what to do. He had another monster in his hand that augmented his Battleguard's power, and was enhanced by the monster he currently had on the field. It was a no-brainer.

"I summon my Lava Battleguard in Attack Mode! Now, each grants the other a significant boost to their attack, meaning it'll be even harder to take them down. Now, Lava Battleguard, attack Grappler!"

Joey's red ogre smashed Kaiba's lizard monster with a club. Kaiba made a dismissive gesture. He hadn't really expected Grappler to do anything other than absorb the attack. He did have a plan for his next monster, though. Bonz may have gotten around it, but that just meant that Joey wouldn't know what to expect.

"I summon Wall of Illusions in Defense Mode, and activate my Gift of the Mystical Elf trap card, increasing my Life Points by 300 for each monster on the field! Stop me if you can!"

Joey was a little daunted by the increase in Kaiba's Life Points (Kaiba: 2900; Joey: 2000), but tried not to let it show. He was a little upset that Bonz hadn't triggered the effect of Kaiba's illusory monster. He had to think this through; it wouldn't do to get eliminated because of ignorance. Fortunately, he had another monster in his hand to sacrifice.

"I summon my Giltia the Dark Knight. Now, Giltia, cut that monster out of the picture!"

Giltia's spear came down towards Kaiba's flesh-and-bone wall. Before it could hit, Joey's armored warrior faded away. Joey shook his head, not able to comprehend what had just happened.

"My monster is a nightmare for people who love attacking. It simply dismisses monsters that try and attack it, sending them back to your hand after your attack. And, next time, use a monster that can destroy mine, or you'll never get through. Done?"

Joey nodded, still dumbstruck by the power of Kaiba's monster. He couldn't attack it with either of his Battleguards without losing it and, consequently, the bonus they gave to each other. He was almost too distracted to notice Kaiba taking his turn.

"Sorry, what?"

"I said, I summon my diamond dragon, Hyozanryu. Now, Blinding Beam, obliterate his Lava Battleguard!"

Kaiba's massive dragon shifted, focusing the reflections off of its scales into a large ball of light. It shot a blast from the sphere, washing the field in light. When the light cleared, however, Kaiba's dragon was gone, and he had lost some Life Points. (Kaiba: 2700; Joey: 2000) Joey whooped and pumped his fist into the air.

"That's right. Your little duo can absorb attacks from opposing monsters. Should have remembered that. Go."

Joey drew. He would have to lose one of his Battleguards in order to remove Kaiba's monster from the field. _Might as well lose the weak one_, he thought. _Then, I won't take as much damage when his attack comes._

"I order my Lava Battleguard to attack your Wall of Illusions!"

Joey's red ogre rushed Kaiba's monster, smashing it to shards as it faded away. Joey pulled the card back to his hand and decided to play one card face-down from his hand. He was about to end his turn when Kaiba shook his head.

"You do remember that you get to summon a monster, right?"

Joey shook his head. Why was Kaiba reminding him of that? Not that he was complaining; he'd had forgotten he could summon a monster after he attacked. Grinning, he replayed his Lava Battleguard. Whatever Kaiba's motives, he wasn't complaining. Kaiba drew his card, grinning a little.

"I summon my Lord of Dragons in Defense Mode, and activate my face-down Flute of Summoning Dragon. This card allows me to play up to two dragons from my hand as long as my Lord of Dragons is on the field. I choose my Blue-Eyes White Dragon and my Kaiser Glider!"

The kneeling man in the bone-covered robes was dwarfed by both the gold dragon that appeared on his left and the well-known white dragon on his right. Both dragons also dwarfed Joey's monsters, a fact that he was keenly made aware of when Kaiba ordered his Blue-Eyes to attack. Joey almost started sweating bullets until he remembered his face-down card.

"I trigger my Chasm of Spikes, destroying your dragon and dealing you damage!"

Kaiba's dragon fell like a stone into Joey's pit trap, and Kaiba's Life Points dropped a little. (Kaiba: 1950; Joey: 2000) Joey allowed himself a little internal gloating, but suddenly remembered that Kaiba still had another dragon on his side, and it too had more attack that either of his monsters.

"Kaiser Glider attacks your Lava Battleguard!"

Kaiba's golden dragon swooped forward, tearing Joey's monster to shreds with its claws. (Kaiba: 1950; Joey: 1650) Joey was a little worried now that his combo was disrupted, especially since he had forgotten to have his Swamp Battleguard take the blow instead, which would have saved him a few Life Points. Switching his ogre to Defense Mode, he played his Claw Reacher in Defense Mode, just in case Kaiba had some card to destroy his first monster. Kaiba drew and looked at his hand. Conceivably, he could switch his Lord of Dragons to Attack Mode and wipe out Joey's monsters, but it would only leave him open to an attack from whatever massive monster Joey might have in his hand. He decided instead to keep his monsters where they were.

"My Kaiser Glider attacks your Swamp Battleguard!"

Joey watched as his monster was destroyed by Kaiba's dragon. He looked at his hand. He had his Time Wizard in his hand, but his Baby Dragon was nowhere to be seen. None of his other cards were all that helpful right now, though, so he decided to take a chance.

"I summon my Time Wizard and activate his Time Roulette! Show me a castle!"

Round and round the wand spun, blurring as it sped up. After about a minute, it began to slow down until it stopped . . . on a skull. The air around Joey's side of the field warped. When the air cleared, neither of Joey's monsters were present, and his Life Points were lower than when he'd played his card. (Kaiba: 1950; Joey: 1150) Joey let out his breath. He'd lost, his summon wasted on his Time Wizard. Kaiba ordered his dragon to attack, wiping Joey out. Joey turned to walk away when Kaiba vaulted his platform, marching over to him. Joey turned to see Kaiba's hand extended towards him. He put his own hand out, receiving a hearty handshake for his troubles.

"You're good. A little unrefined, but good. Remember that."

Joey nodded, unsure of what to say. Kaiba had nothing else; his piece said, he walked to the stairs in preparation for Yugi's match with Bandit. Joey followed, trying to figure out what Kaiba was trying to say to him.

* * *

Yugi let out his breath slowly. He desperately wanted to play against Kaiba, but he'd first have to beat Bandit's aggressive deck. Defensive play wouldn't help here; Yugi had to coming out with guns blazing or lose horribly, unable to catch up with his opponent. This was going to be tough, but not impossible. Hopefully. After cutting Bandit's deck, Yugi drew his hand and decided to go first.

"I summon my Dark Magician in Attack Mode! Your turn."

Several members of the crowd were astonished; Dark Magician had been, until this morning, the strongest monster in Yugi's deck. The fact that Yugi was simply throwing it out instead of trying to draw Bandit out was astonishing. Bandit, however, was not impressed.

"Come on. I'm supposed to be scared of that? Kid, you don't have it in you to outrace me. Now, Fusilier Dragon, the Dual Mode Beast, level his magician!"

A massive red machine with tank treads in place of legs rolled out in front of Bandit Keith. It trained all of the numerous guns it possessed on Yugi's monster. The blast they produced shattered Yugi's monster like glass. (Yugi: 1700; Bandit Keith: 2000) Yugi was stunned. He'd assumed Bandit had played his biggest monsters against Atticus, and he was going to pay for it now. Looking through the cards in his hand, he grabbed one and threw it in Defense Mode. His Griffore was going to have to take one for the team. Keith scoffed.

"I don't believe this. I mean, why would the old man just throw his deck away like this? If he's dead, he's probably rolling around in his grave. Machine King, attack!"

The Transformers-inspired monster shot its fist at the glowing space sitting in front of Yugi. His monster slid out of the glow just in time to eat the attack of Keith's monster. Yugi drew and immediately laid down his Horn Imp. After a moment's thought, he placed two cards from his hand face-down, hoping to deter Keith's next attack. It didn't work. Keith blew away his monster, playing two cards face-down before he ended his turn. Yugi drew again, finding himself staring at his Blue-Eyes. Something must have showed on his face, because Keith immediately went for one of his face-down cards.

"You'd make a terrible poker player, kid, because you've got a terrible poker face. My Pillager card lets me look at your hand and take one of your cards for myself. Now, let's see what you've got!"

Yugi silently handed over his cards. Keith was anything but silent; as soon as he saw Yugi's Blue-Eyes, he whooped, pumping his hand into the air. On the upper level, Tea shook her head.

"He's an oaf. Why'd Pegasus let him in?"

"Pegasus doesn't care about your mannerisms most of the time, unless you're particularly larcenous or evil. Do you think someone like Copperhead or Weevil Underwood would have gotten very far if Pegasus thought stuff like that mattered? Besides, if he came down on Keith, Pegasus would risk losing a large portion of the American market; Bandit's pretty popular there for some reason."

Tea shook her head again. What Atticus had said made sense, even if she didn't like it. _If I had my way, pigs like that would get nowhere_. The thought didn't help Yugi one bit, but it made her feel a little better. Not much, though; she was more caught up in the fact that Yugi was about to get beaten down by his own monster. She got even more worried when Yugi didn't play a monster. Keith laughed heartily when he saw that. _Of course, he'd know whether or not Yugi was bluffing, since he just got a look at his hand. Please have something good face-down, Yugi._ She blinked a few times and noticed that she was crying a little. Joey saw this and put his arm over her shoulder.

"Don't worry, the little guy's got something. I just know it. At least, he'd better have something. I'd hate to see this jerk win."

Keith drew his card and immediately played Yugi's Blue-Eyes White Dragon. He made a show of looking through his hand, eliciting a "Boo!" from Nikita and Joey. Smirking, he waved at the two of them.

"Don't worry kiddies, your buddy's gonna be joining you soon. Blue-Eyes White Dragon . . . shoot, what's the attack called again? Kaiba, you've gotta help me out on this one. What's the attack called? White something. White Blaster, White Thunder, White . . . Lightning? Is that right? Sounds great, anyway. Blue-Eyes White Dragon, White Lightning!"

As soon as the dragon began building up energy in its mouth, Yugi's hand shot for one of his face-down cards.

"I trigger Mokiou Mist! This card rusts all of your Machines, weakening them!"

"Big deal. They're not even necessary now that I have your dragon. Blue-Eyes, unleash your attack!"

Yugi went for his other face-down card.

"You know, the mist card actually is important, because my Mirror Force reflects Blue-Eyes lightning attack back at them. And since all your monsters are wet, it enhances the attack even more!"

Bandit watched in horror as his monsters fried under the reflected assault. He was even more horrified when he watched his Life Points dwindle away to nothing. (Yugi: 1700; Bandit Keith: 0) Atticus had gotten huffy when he lost; Bandit exploded.

"You little cheat! How in God's name did you pull that off, you filthy stinking-"

"That is enough! Keith Howards, you have proven yourself to be a boorish oaf throughout this tournament. Leave the island immediately, and do not return!"

Everyone was staring in stunned disbelief at Pegasus, who had leapt out of his seat during his order. Apparently Pegasus did care about mannerisms after a while. Bandit worked his jaw around, trying to think up some kind of retort. Finding none, he turned and left, making an obscene gesture with his hand as he did so. After a moment, Pegasus sat back down and cleared his throat.

"I apologize for this incident. I hope you won't hold this against me. Now then, it seems we have a final match to get to. Shall we begin?"

Yugi and Kaiba met each other's eyes. Both of them read the same readiness in the other's stare. Kaiba nodded first, followed by Yugi. Without saying a word, Kaiba stepped down to the unoccupied platform across from Yugi. After shuffling their decks and cutting their opponent's, they drew their hands, ready for what was thought to be the greatest duel of the tournament. By unspoken agreement, Yugi took the first turn.

"I summon my Curse of Dragon in Attack Mode and play one card face-down. Your turn."

Kaiba looked at his hand. Just from what he'd seen, Yugi had evolved from the nervous, timid player he'd played against a few weeks ago. The only question was, had he grown enough? If pressed, could he find victory in even the most difficult situations? Kaiba decided to bait Yugi, lead him in and then pull the noose tight. If Yugi had truly learned anything, he'd be able to slip back out of any trap Kaiba set in front of him.

"I play my Ryu-Kishin in Defense Mode and play a card face-down. Bring it on."

Now Yugi had to think. Kaiba probably had something waiting for him. If Yugi had learned anything, it was that he shouldn't rush into attacking. However, Kaiba seemed Machiavellian enough to play a useless card face-down in order to screw with his opponent's head. There were a lot of questions he could be asking, each causing him more distress than the last. He felt like his head was going to explode. Just as he thought he was going to lose it, he felt his thoughts slow down. He felt relaxed, better than he'd felt during the entire tournament, as though someone was whispering something reassuring to him. He decided to listen to that voice.

"Curse of Dragon, attack Ryu-Kishin!"

Yugi's worm-like dragon unleashed a blast of fire from its mouth, melting Kaiba's demon away. Kaiba grinned, but, surprisingly, Yugi wasn't as worried as he thought he'd be. Something told him that it was going to be all right.

"I summon Swordstalker in Attack Mode. And with his effect, Swordstalker increases his attack by 400 for each monster I remove from my Graveyard when I summon him. Swordstalker, attack Curse of Dragon!"

Yugi reached for his face-down card.

"I trigger Shift! Now, I can switch my Curse of Dragon for a monster in my hand, and I choose my Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

Yugi's serpentine yellow dragon shimmered and shifted into a black, more classic dragon. It shot a stream of flames at Swordstalker, obscuring his view of the fiendish warrior. All of a sudden, Swordstalker shot through the flames, slashing Yugi's dragon in half. (Yugi: 2000; Kaiba: 2000) Yugi was stunned that Kaiba's monster was still on the field and his wasn't. If Kaiba had increased the attack of his Swordstalker again, he would have taken some damage; otherwise, both monsters should be gone.

"I bet you're wondering why your monster is gone. Well, my face-down card was Sword of Dragon Soul, which lets me automatically destroy any dragon I attack with it. So your monster is gone, and mine is not. Your turn."

Yugi looked at his hand. None of his monsters had the attack to beat Swordstalker; he'd been banking on his Red-Eyes wiping out that monster so he could make a free attack on Kaiba on his next turn with Curse of Dragon, winning him the game. Obviously, that wasn't going to work; he had to think of a new strategy. Grabbing a card, he decided to build up a defensive wall.

"I summon Kuriboh in Defense Mode, and play my Multiply spell card, generating thousands of monsters to protect me! Try and break through this!"

Kaiba blinked as an army of little furballs sprung up in front of him, the only outward sign of his surprise. Kuriboh was disparaged by almost every player on the pro circuit; even he hadn't known of the combo with Multiply until just now. _This just got interesting. Let's see if he can back this up._

"Hmmm, impressive. A self-generating wall of defensive monsters. I summon La Jinn the Mystical Genie of the Lamp in Attack Mode and play one card face-down. Your turn."

Yugi drew, but only got his Meteor Dragon, which Swordstalker would wipe out with his sword. He looked through the other cards in his hand. Polymerization was useless; he had neither Gaia the Fierce Knight nor Red-Eyes Black Dragon in his hand, and even if he had them, all the fusion monsters he could play were dragons, which Kaiba could easily destroy with Swordstalker. Monster Reborn wasn't useful in this situation either. Grimacing, he played both cards face-down, hoping he could psych Kaiba out. He vaguely succeeded; Kaiba played a card face-down and ended his turn. Yugi drew, and got something that could turn the game around.

"I play De-Spell, dispelling your Sword of Dragon Soul! And with that gone, I summon Meteor Dragon and activate my Monster Reborn spell card, returning my Red-Eyes Black Dragon to the field!"

"That's great and all, but the best you can do is sacrifice your monsters to destroy mine. Think this through."

"I am. I activate my other face-down card, Polymerization, fusing my two dragons into my strongest monster, my Meteor Black Dragon! Now, attack La Jinn!"

Yugi's massive dragon blasted Kaiba's genie with a stream of flaming rocks from its mouth. (Yugi: 2000; Kaiba: 300) Kaiba blinked, surprised again by Yugi's skill (he refused to call it luck, as doing so would, he felt, degrade Yugi in his mind). He looked at this hand. Two Blue-Eyes, Lord of Dragons, Crush Card Virus and the Negate Attack he had just drawn. He didn't really need Lord of Dragons right now; in fact, all it would do would enhance Yugi's monster. He decided to play it and Negate Attack face-down, hoping he wouldn't need Negate Attack. He gestured to Yugi to take his turn. Yugi drew and played his Card of Sanctity. Kaiba grinned when he saw his draw; two of the cards weren't as important as that third Blue-Eyes. He heard Yugi announce an attack, and decided that he would like to keep Lord of Dragons after all.

"I trigger Negate Attack, ending your Battle Phase! Are you done? Good. Now, I trigger my own Polymerization, fusing my three Blue-Eyes White Dragons in my hand to summon the ultimate dragon, Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon! Now, unleash your attack, and level the playing field!"

Three energy beams struck Meteor Black Dragon in the chest, blowing a large hole in it before it dissolved. (Yugi: 1000; Kaiba: 300). Looking at his other cards, he decided to play one of them face-down, gesturing to Yugi to take his turn. As soon as Yugi drew, Kaiba triggered his trap.

"I trigger Gift of the Mystical Elf! Unfortunately, it triggers off of cards on your field instead of total monsters, but I'll still take it. Anything else?"

Yugi played two cards face-down, disappointed at the sudden swing of the game. (Yugi: 1000; Kaiba: 1200) He was still ahead, but his top monster had been destroyed, and his face-down cards were, again, bluffs. The only thing he had going was his endless wall of Kuribohs. Looking through his hand, he saw an odd monster. His eyes drifted over it the first time, but shot back immediately.

The illustration on the card was an Egyptian statue, but only the head and torso. He had two other monsters in his hand that looked like missing limbs. _No way. Exodia? But I've only got three pieces, and it's not looking like I'll be around to see the other two._ Exodia was the ultimate monster, capable of destroying players just by being played, but was split up between five cards. The odds of winning with him were astronomical, which was why no one used the cards. There was still a chance he could pull it off, but he had to get some really good draws. Right now, though, he had to wait and see what he got. He gestured for Kaiba to take his turn.

"I play my De-Spell, destroying your Multiply and leaving your Kuriboh vulnerable once more. Now, Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, wipe his monster from the field!"

Kuriboh didn't stand a chance. _Now_ Yugi was in trouble. He'd hoped Kuriboh would last longer, but that was not to be. Fortunately one of his face-down cards, while not a trap, could slow Kaiba down for a little bit.

"I trigger my Swords of Revealing Light, which paralyzes your monsters' attacks for three turns. And now, I summon my Curse of Dragon in Attack Mode! Take your turn."

Another Exodia piece in his hand. All he needed was the Right Leg, and he would win. Unfortunately, Kaiba didn't want him around to draw it.

"I summon my Kaiser Glider in Attack Mode. Kaiser Glider, attack Curse of Dragon!"

Kaiba's golden dragon sliced straight through Yugi's, dealing a large chunk of damage in the process. (Yugi: 600; Kaiba: 1200) Yugi drew. Not Exodia, but he could use his Mystical Elf as a defensive monster. It wouldn't mean anything to play it face-down; Kaiba would know that it wasn't anything with a flip effect, seeing as Yugi didn't really have any monsters with one of those. Kaiba wiped it out with his Kaiser Glider. Yugi drew again, and had a card that might help.

"I play my Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two cards! And now," Yugi said, disheartened by the fact that he hadn't drawn his last Exodia piece, "I play my Giant Soldier of Stone in Defense Mode. Your turn."

Kaiba drew his card, more than a little disappointed in this turn of events. He'd been hoping that Yugi would manage to pull something out of his hat, but it didn't look like it was going to happen. Suppressing a sigh, he had his Kaiser Glider attack, destroying Yugi's monster. He looked at the card in his hand. Stop Defense. If Yugi played another defensive monster this turn, Kaiba would use the card to open Yugi up for a game-winning attack. _It's a shame. Even I was kind of hoping for him to win_. Kaiba gestured for Yugi to take his turn.

Yugi shook his head. His Swords of Revealing Light were going to wear off this turn, meaning that Kaiba's Ultimate Dragon would be free to attack. He needed a miracle, and he needed it now. As he reached for his deck, he felt something in his head, that same reassuring voice that he had heard throughout the tournament. Right now, it was telling him that he was going to be all right, that the card he drew would help him tremendously. Trusting that voice, he drew.

Kaiba knew immediately that something was up. The nervous look on Yugi's face had disappeared, replaced by a mild optimism. As he watched, Yugi began laying the cards in his hand across his monster zones.

"Why are you doing that? You can only play one monster on your turn."

"I am only playing one monster. A monster so powerful, it had to be split up among five cards. Now rise, Exodia the Forbidden One!"

A black circle appeared in front of Yugi. It was soon full of light blue lines that formed a star. A hand emerged from it, followed by its brother and a head resembling the sarcophagi of the Egyptian pharaohs. Long chains dangled from the wrists of the titanic being standing there, truly the ultimate monster. Kaiba began chuckling. _He did it. He really did it. What a way to go._

"Now, Exodia, Obliterate!"

Exodia's hand became the focus of a fireball that slowly expanded. As it reached critical mass, Yugi's monster threw it at Kaiba's rather crowded field. It exploded with the force of a bomb, disintegrating Kaiba's monsters. (Yugi: 600; Kaiba: 0) Yugi became aware of cheering from the top level. Tea, Nikita, and Joey were applauding loudly. Even Atticus was getting in on it. What stood out more so, though, was the slow clapping coming from Kaiba. Yugi walked off his platform, only to be called back.

"Oh Yugi-boy! I hope you haven't forgotten about my little wager. You have a choice: take the prize money, or duel me for whatever your little heart desires. What'll it be?"

It took only a second for Yugi to decide.

"I'll take that wager of yours, right here, right now. Let's duel!"


	8. Chapter 8

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own most of the characters in this project.

Disclaimer: No slash, no hentai. It's a project involving dueling. If you don't like it, that's entirely your problem. I just don't see the appeal in having Kaiba nail Yugi, or whatever the fad is right now.

Sorry the last chapter is so late. Please don't hold it against me, and stay tuned for Yu-Gi-Oh! Legacy: Battle City, coming sometime relatively soon to a computer near you!

**Chapter 8**

"Are you sure about this, Yugi? I mean, you already won the tournament, and Pegasus is the guy that created the game. It was tough enough for you to beat Kaiba, and Pegasus-"

"I'm sure, Tea. Something in me has to do this."

"Yeah, well, don't you go losin' on us, man."

"What do _you_ care? You rip on Yugi all the time, and you treat me and Tea like crap too."

"Little guy just beat the world champion. You gotta respect skills like that."

"_Pff_. Whatever, just don't start thinking we're buddies all of a sudden."

Yugi grinned a little, said his final goodbyes and left the upper level. He saw Kaiba as he was headed down the stairs. Kaiba didn't say anything but simply nodded as he headed the other way. Yugi stepped down to the platform from which he would be dueling. He was shortly joined by Pegasus, who looked positively delighted to be playing. Tea noticed this and commented to the others, who responded.

"Maybe he's really crazy. You hear these rumors all the time, and who's to say they're not true?"

"Dude's probably just happy to play. Runnin' a company and all, you can't have too much time for games, even if you make 'em, right?"

"Wrong on both counts. He's happy because he knows he's going to win."

Joey, Nikita and Tea all turned to Kaiba. He was still looking out over the duel field, as though unaware he'd just pronounced Yugi's gaming demise.

"What do you mean, he knows he's going to win? It still comes down to luck of the dr-"

"Had you ever even heard of Toon World before this tournament? Because even I hadn't. If I had to guess, I'd say the card didn't pass playtesting for whatever reason, and Pegasus just couldn't let it go to waste. The fact that Yugi's only seen the card once, and only for one turn at that, is the first reason."

"There's more than one?"

"The second reason is this: Pegasus has been watching the finals like a hawk. His duel fields are all linked to a central server, which he probably tore through looking for information on all of us when we reached the castle. He knows every card Yugi's played this entire tournament."

"That . . . that's not fair! It's cheating!"

"That's not the biggest reason. The third is simply this: Pegasus has the Millennium Eye, a powerful artifact that lets him read other people's minds. He'll know what Yugi's playing before even Yugi does."

"So how's Yugi supposed to beat him?"

"He's not. That's why Pegasus offered the concept of the winner wagering his prize on a duel with him. He hates losing more than anything, and this way he doesn't have to. There _might_ be a way, but it relies on Yugi figuring out the Millennium Puzzle early enough in the game for it to matter. But that's something even _I_ couldn't do, and I've been trying for years."

"The little guy can do it. And if he can't, then we'll just have to show that Pegasus's nothing more'n a fraud."

"Good luck with that. I can't think of how you can prove the Eye is little more than a piece of jewelry. Everyone who sees it thinks my Millennium Rod is just some antiquity I like to carry around. No, Yugi has to trip Pegasus up, and fast, if he wants to do anything to him."

Tea couldn't believe what she was hearing. Yugi had worked so hard to get this far, and now he didn't have a chance? She thought she was going to cry. Joey looked furious, and Nikita actually had words with Kaiba.

"How can you say Yugi doesn't have a chance? You're just mad he beat you, you coldhearted bastard! Take it back!"

"I never said Yugi didn't have a chance. I just said it would be extremely difficult. And I'm actually kind of happy he won, to be honest. It was the last test he needed to pass, in my opinion, for him to unlock his true potential as a duelist. Now he just has to show that it wasn't a fluke."

Kaiba nodded at Yugi, who had looked up for one last glance at his friends before his duel. He slowly shuffled his deck, watching as Pegasus did the same. When the decks were taken across the arena for cutting, Yugi made sure Pegasus's deck was sufficiently randomized. Pegasus, on the other hand, simply tapped the top of Yugi's deck, indicating that he didn't want to mess with it. Yugi was a little confused by this, but didn't bring it up; Pegasus had his reasons, whatever they were. His deck was returned to him, and he almost drew his hand before Pegasus spoke.

"Just remember Yugi-boy, if you win, you get the prize money _plus_ a single favor, which can be anything you want. But if I win, you get nothing but a ride home and a story to tell your friends. Sound fair?"

Yugi nodded, trying to stay in the zone as much as possible. Pegasus smiled.

"Well then, let's get this party started! I'll take the first turn, summoning my Happy Lover in Defense Mode, and playing one card face-down for good measure. Your turn!"

Yugi drew and found himself staring down his Curse of Dragon. He grinned, thinking that this might be a quick duel as long as Toon World didn't come into play. Searching the other cards in his hand, he found Monster Recovery. It wouldn't do him any good right now, but would do as a bluff.

"I play a card face-down, and summon my mighty Curse of Dragon in Attack Mode! Now-"

"Let's be honest, Yugi. I'm not fooled by your Monster Recovery card. You don't have many traps in your deck to begin with, and really, why would you need one this early in the game anyway? Still, more power to you for trying."

Yugi was stunned. How had Pegasus known his card? Had he accidentally let it show as he was playing it? He turned around, scanning the upper levels for any kind of hidden cameras. Pegasus actually laughed as Yugi was frantically searching.

"No cameras, Yugi-boy. No mistakes, either. My Millennium Eye just gives me a little bit of insight as to the inner workings of your mind. Fascinating place that is, if I do say so myself. So full of thoughts I've stopped thinking, myself. Oh, to be young again! But I'm going on, aren't I? You still have an attack to make, don't you?"

"Ye-yeah, sure. Curse of Dragon, wipe his monster off the field!"

Yugi's wormlike dragon unleashed a gout of fire, burning Pegasus' fairy to ash. Yugi gestured to Pegasus to take his turn, still too confused by Pegasus' knowledge of his plays. _What did he do? What did _I_ do? How did he know what my card was? Does he know_-

"Oh Yugi-boy! Are you paying attention? I said, I attack your Curse of Dragon with my Bickuribox!"

An ugly jack-in-the-box popped out of the field, slicing Yugi's dragon neatly in half with its scythe. (Yugi: 1700; Pegasus: 2000) Yugi drew his card and saw Silver Fang, the white wolf monster he had used to great effect against Tea in the tournament he'd won to qualify for Duelist Kingdom. He scanned his hand and found he had the other card, the one that combed with the otherwise weak Silver Fang to make it an almost unstoppable force. He decided to use this combo while he still could.

"I summon Silver Fang and combo him with the Full Moon spell card, doubling his power while the moon is in the sky!"

"Hmmm. I trigger Sun Shower. The sunlight from my card negates your Full Moon spell, rendering your wolf just a sad little puppy dog again. Anything else?"

Yugi silently switched Silver Fang to defense mode. This was ridiculous, that Pegasus could outplay him so easily. How was he doing it? He knew already that there weren't any cameras, but he couldn't think of any other way for Pegasus to know his plays like this. Did he know-?

"The contents of your hand? Of course I do. Horn Imp, Horn of the Unicorn and The Eye of Truth, which I'm amazed you haven't played yet. It might help you if you can see my hand just like I know yours, although letting me gain more Life Points is probably a bad idea at this point. Your call."

"Cheater! Play fair!"

"Yeah, what she said!"

Pegasus turned his cycloptic glare to Nikita and Joey, who had both jumped up at Pegasus' latest mind trick. While he was berating them, Yugi became aware of another presence in his head. He knew this well; whatever it was, it had helped calm him during some of his more intense duels of the tournament. To his surprise, it seemed to be talking to him, and it was saying-

"So, my turn, is it? Well, I think it's time to bring out my ultimate weapon. I play the spell Toon World, and use its magic to summon my ultimate toon monster, the Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon! Isn't it adorable, Kaiba-boy?"

Pegasus had directed this last fragment to the upper level, where Kaiba had shot up in fury at the sight of his dragon warped to Pegasus' twisted designs. Pegasus got a laugh out of it, and another when his dragon wiped Yugi's wolf off the field. He was a little surprised to see Yugi muttering to himself, but thought nothing of it; the little boy was probably praying or something.

Yugi was not praying, but instead talking silently to the voice in his head. Still talking, he drew. Across the field, Pegasus saw Yugi stand up a little straighter before he played a card.

"I play the spell Card Destruction! Now both players discard their hands and draw a new one equal to the number of cards they discarded. I then play a monster face-down and play a card face-down. Your turn."

Pegasus grinned; Yugi had no secrets from him as long as he had the Millennium Eye on his side. He reached into Yugi's mind, searching for the cards he had played and what he had in his hand and found . . . nothing. He looked over and saw the lone card from Yugi's hand sitting face-down next to his fleshy hand. He tried again, but still came up dry.

"What . . . how are you-?"

"How am I what?"

Pegasus was furious, but he couldn't really do anything without blowing his secret about the Millennium Eye, and at that point it could be said he was cheating, at which point he would automatically lose. And he did so _hate_ to lose. Still, what happened if Yugi had a monster or trap he hadn't seen yet? If he walked into an obvious trap like that, he'd look like a fool.

"Hmmm . . . I summon my Toon Skull in Attack Mode and end my turn."

All watched as Yugi drew his card. Everyone up top noticed his sudden change in stature and sheer aura that occurred right before he drew. Tea saw Kaiba smile a little and decided to ask him what was so funny.

"He did it. I tried to figure out how the Millennium Puzzle worked for years, and he's done it in a few weeks. It's just funny in a self-depreciating way, if you think about it."

Tea didn't see the humor, but nodded like she had. Down below, confident Yugi grabbed one of his face-down cards, turning it over.

"It looks like I'm going to get to use this card after all. I trigger my Monster Recovery spell card, returning my face-down monster and my hand to my deck. And now my spell lets me draw two new cards from my deck!"

Pegasus was infuriated by Yugi's sheer hubris. How could he expect to win? How was he beating Pegasus' mind probes? What had turned him around from nervous and twitchy to skillful and arrogant? He was so distracted by his frustration that he almost didn't notice Yugi playing a monster.

"I'm sorry, Yugi-boy, could you repeat that?"

"I said, I summon the real Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and order him to attack your Toon Skull! Blue-Eyes, White Lightning!"

Pegasus' monster, like all good cartoon characters, refused to die, but he still took the damage. (Yugi: 1700; Pegasus: 1500) Pegasus grinned. Yugi had just set himself up to lose. His Toon dragon could kill Yugi's Blue-Eyes without him taking any damage, at which point he could send his Toon Skull in for the kill. It lacked the dramatic flair he'd planned for earlier, but he couldn't have Yugi showing him up. He glanced at his hand and set a card face-down, just in case. In case what, he didn't know, but it never hurt to have insurance.

"Now, my Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon attacks your monster. Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon, Toon Lightning, go!"

The lightning bolt looked dead on target with Yugi's dragon when, astonishingly, a hat dropped down over the dragon. It spread out into a set of four. When Pegasus' attack hit the hat it had been aimed at, nothing was destroyed. Pegasus glared at Yugi, who had a slight grin on his face.

"Sorry, but my Magical Hats card makes you guess where my dragon lies. And I warn you, only _your_ dragon has the attack points to destroy mine. Just something to think about."

Pegasus was absolutely furious. By the time he dug into Yugi's brain, the information on which hat was hiding his monster had vanished. _How is he . . . that thing on his neck! It's a Millennium Item!_ Pegasus didn't know how he had missed that before. A few Millennium Items had spirits hidden within them; whether they were beneficial or harmful depended on the temperament of the wielder, or so he'd heard. Obviously Yugi's wanted to help. How to turn that fact against this particular spirit was a mystery, but Pegasus needed to find out before he lost this game. Mulling it over, he gestured to Yugi to take his turn. Yugi drew and grinned.

"I hide a face-down card under one of my hats and end my turn."

Pegasus grew a wicked smile. He now knew exactly what hat Yugi had hidden his monster under. The game was his. He drew his card, not really caring what he drew.

"You little fool, you've given it all away. Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon, attack his monster under the hat on the left!"

Yugi smirked a little.

"You guess wrong. Trigger face-down card, Mirror Force!"

The hat lifted, revealing nothing but a silvery sheen in midair. His dragon's attack bounced off of it, reflecting back onto his monsters. (Yugi: 1700; Pegasus: 300) Pegasus was flabbergasted. No one knew that his Toon monsters were vulnerable to their own attacks but him, right? But somehow Yugi had figured it out, and now Pegasus had no monsters to defend himself with. He did have a monster in his hand, which might prove useful. He played it face-down and called it a turn.

Yugi felt his mind shift, and in an instant the voice in his head was in control. It held out a hand over the field, gesturing importantly.

"I think it's time to show you what you missed. I dispel my Magical Hats, revealing my dragon! Now I play Pot of Greed, letting me draw two cards!" He grinned when he saw what he had drawn. "This gets better and better. First, I play my De-Spell card, sending your Toon World to the Graveyard. Then I summon Gaia the Fierce Knight, and order it to attack your face-down monster!"

Pegasus was ecstatic. Yugi had walked right into his trap without even knowing it. Come to think of it, he had the perfect idea for how to deal with Yugi's little mind shuffle trick, but first things first . . .

"My Dark-Eyes Illusionist laughs at your pathetic attack, and so do I! My monster paralyzes your attacking monsters for the turn after it's been flipped face-up! And now I activate my Black Illusion Ritual spell, sacrificing my Illusionist to summon my most powerful monster, Relinquished! No more kid gloves, Yugi-boy, I'm throwing everything into this battle now. Relinquished, absorb his Fierce Knight as your own!"

Pegasus' new monster was covered in a pair of armored plates, which rose at his command to reveal a sucking orifice in its center. Yugi's knight was pulled into that hole; as soon as it hit the hole, the armor plates closed, and Gaia melded out of the armor in front of the monster. Pegasus didn't seem to be done, either.

"I say, Yugi-boy, do you know what would make this game even _more_ fun? No? I see Kaiba hasn't told you about Shadow Games yet. Well, no time like the present to learn, eh? Here in the Shadow Realm," and as he said this, the arena began to darken until the only light seemed to be coming from the two duelists and the spectators, "the games are all too real. Is the pressure too much for you already?"

Yugi had dropped to his knees as soon as the arena had gotten fully dark; his head was pounding from some kind of stress, though he couldn't tell what had caused such stress. Up in the stands, Kaiba had pulled out his Millennium Rod and was gesturing to the others to take hold of it. Nikita, the last to grab on, had almost passed out before she could lay a hand on the Rod; as soon as she touched it, she came fully back into her senses. Kaiba looked furious.

"Monster! He knows Yugi hasn't had time to get used to Shadow Games. Is he trying to kill him?"

"What do you mean?"

"In a Shadow Game, everything is real. The monsters, the magic, even the damage. It takes an exceptionally strong will to survive a Shadow Game, something Yugi hasn't had the time to develop yet. The spirit in the Puzzle could take care of it, but that means Pegasus can read his mind again. It's not good."

Down below, Pegasus was gloating as Yugi stumbled to his feet. He was so busy laughing that he didn't notice Yugi playing the last card in his hand face-down. Before he could fully black out, Yugi slipped back behind the presence in his head, letting it take the brunt of the Shadow Realms' attack. Now that it was in charge, the spirit looked _very_ angry.

"You cheat. How can you expect the boy to compete with you if you keep changing the rules on him like this? You should be-"

"Oh, please, like you wouldn't do the same thing in my position. I just hate to lose so, and this provides the perfect chance to not do so. I mean, who's going to believe this kind of story, anyway? Now, are you going to make your move or not?"

"Fine. I attack your abomination with my Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

"Are you serious?" Pegasus chuckled as Yugi's attack impacted the knight embedded within Relinquished's armor plates. "Maybe you should have done your homework first. When Relinquished is protected by a monster, you take the damage that I would normally take! Isn't that great?"

It was not great. Yugi really didn't need to take any more damage in this duel, but Pegasus' insidious monster was determined to mess with him. (Yugi: 1000; Pegasus: 300) Pegasus looked smug as he drew his card, and he had every reason to be; Yugi had nothing to stop him from taking the Blue-Eyes and attacking him for the win. He drew, laying down his hand immediately afterwards. He had no need for a backup plan, not when he had victory within his grasp like this.

"Well Yugi-boy, it looks like this game is over. Relinquished, absorb his monster and end this, now!"

Yugi slumped visibly. At first Pegasus thought he was resigning himself to defeat, but then he realized that Yugi had switched again. Why had he done that? Why couldn't he just lie down and die already? When Yugi reached down to his field, Pegasus realized that he had made a grave error, one that he could not possibly correct now.

"I activate the Spellbinding Circle trap card I set earlier, while you were busy lording your superiority over me! While your monster doesn't have any attack points to reduce, my circle prevents it from raising its armor, keeping you from stealing my monster! You'd better do something now, because you're not going to last through my next turn otherwise! Nothing? Oh well, I guess my Blue-Eyes is going to have to attack you for the win. Blue-Eyes White Dragon, White Lightning to end this nightmare!"

As his dragon's attack arced towards Pegasus' imprisoned monster, Yugi watched the darkness melt away; by the time it hit, he was back in the real world, able to stand up fully as the pressure of keeping his cards in play vanished. Pegasus watched in horror as his monster shattered and his Life Points dropped to nothing. (Yugi: 1000; Pegasus: 0) Yugi had to grab the sides of his duel platform to keep himself steady, especially when Joey, Tea and Nikita rushed down to congratulate him; Tea and Nikita sandwiched him with a double hug, while Joey slapped him hard on the back after the girls had let him go. Even Kaiba had come down, though he didn't get quite as outwardly enthusiastic as the others. Before either of them could say anything to each other, Pegasus walked over, looking distinctly put-out. He held his hand out to Yugi, who shook it reluctantly.

"Well, like I promised, any one thing you want. What'll it be then: my deck, my company, my-"

"I want to know everything you can tell me about Millennium Items. That's all."

Pegasus looked a little surprised, but managed a smile. _At least I won't be losing anything on this. Just sharing a little knowledge_. He said "Follow me", gesturing for Yugi to follow him. They walked out of the arena together, heading deeper into the castle, while everyone else stayed behind.

"That's five times in a row. Now will you admit that you would never have beaten me if I had been trying?"

"All right already, ya made your point, okay? Can we lay off for a bit?"

"Sure, I guess you've had enou-Yugi's back!"

Joey and Nikita had been spending the time while Pegasus and Yugi had been talking by having rematch after rematch of their duel in the finals, to the point that Nikita had roundly proven that she could easily beat Joey in a duel. Tea had been watching from the sidelines, while Kaiba had been on the phone with someone at his company, distanced far enough away that no one else could hear him talking. All four of them came over when Yugi came in. Tea was the first to say anything to him.

"How was it? Did you learn anything?"

"A little. I need some time to process all this, though. Maybe on the boat ride home I can-"

"Yugi, the boats are all gone, taking the people that didn't win back. Kaiba did offer us a ride in his private jet, though, so . . . . if you want to take him up on that . . . "

Yugi nodded, and the four of them followed Kaiba to the roof, where his jet had landed. They boarded, though Yugi took a moment to look over the island. Who would have thought, even a month ago, that Yugi would have even gotten here, let alone won the whole tournament? He couldn't wait to tell other people. Those memories would keep him going for quite a while.

He got onto the boat, pulling on the mask and hooded cloak he wore around his followers, even those as important as the one on this boat. He walked below deck to find Alister, Odion and Strings waiting for him. Alister and Odion looked bored, while Strings looked nervous. Clearly, she hadn't forgotten that he was extremely mad at her for losing not only the chance at Mouto's deck, but also some very valuable cards and a potential recruit. He didn't mention it, though, occupied as he was with other affairs.

"We have a potential windfall, my friends. Alister, will you explain?"

"My lovely friend, Miss Lennox, has uncovered some interesting information." Alister said, keeping his face from showing the triumph he felt at uncovering this. "It seems Seto Kaiba is trying to host his own Duel Monsters Tournament in the near future. This might prove an opportune time to reveal ourselves to the public at large. We will of course need everyone we can get, so . . . "

The leader nodded. He looked to the other two, both of whom looked eager, even Strings through her worry. He raised his hands and stood up, proclaiming his will.

"So be it. When Kaiba's tournament comes to be, the Rare Hunters will be there, waiting to strike. Let us go now. I don't want Pegasus to get suspicious."

Alister signaled to the pilot of the boat, who immediately took it away from the dock. The time for hiding was over. It was time for the Rare Hunters to make their presence known. _Soon,_ he thought. _Soon, my plan will come to be_.


End file.
